MCBH_010-13.pdf

IN REPLY REFER TO:

MCBH 010-13

1 Feb 13

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

1. Contracting Activity. Regional Contracting Office Hawaii (RCO-H), Building 209, Box 63063, Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH) Kaneohe Bay, HI 96863-3063

2. Description of Action Being Approved.

Award a sole-source, fixed-priced, eleven (11) month contract for the period of 1 April 2013 through 28 February 2014 with four (4) 1 year options to extend services for the period of 1 March 2014 through 28 February 2018 to Time Warner Cable company at Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH), Marine Corps Forces Pacific and Tenant Commands. FAR Clause 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services will be incorporated. The estimated value of this contract is $1,880,579.51

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

A Contractor is needed to provide on-site cable and high speed non-network internet support services for existing and established locations and sites on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Services include continuous and uninterrupted cable service, twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week for varying levels of cable TV signal and internet service. The Government reserves the right to add, move, or change service locations after contract start-up, effectively increasing or decreasing the cost of the Indefinite Delivery Requirements contract.

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1), as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302-1(a)(2)(iii), only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority.

In accordance with FA 6.302-1, the required services are peculiar to one cable service provider. Only one responsible source, Time Warner Cable, can provide both cable television and high speed internet access with hard-wired cable connections on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Some official-use buildings on MCBH installations are either listed as National Historic Landmarks or have otherwise been classified as eligible for listing in the National Historic Register. Modification to the outside appearance of these structure is hence either impossible or could be accomplished only through an extensive consultation process. Due to these restrictions, service through hard-wired cable is the minimum requirement for MCBH.

The award of this contract to any other company would not only require lengthy timelines and capital costs for both State and Federal Governments, but also the approval of infrastructure and building permits approvals inherent with doing construction on Government facilities would be a significant factor. There is also an added requirement of completing certain environmental and historical surveys/studies for potential environmental effects and possible disturbance of Hawaiian cultural sites that are present on MCBH to set up a new cable infrastructure base-wide.

It is mission essential to the Government to receive on-going cable and internet connectivity service to satisfy the operational needs of the Government civilian and military workforce. Interruptions to the current number of customer who use cable and internet services would negatively impact day to day operations and would prove to be extremely costly in worker productivity.

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS

MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII

REGIONAL CONTRACTING OFFICE

BOX 63063 KANEOHE BAY HI 96863-3063

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS

MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII

REGIONAL CONTRACTING OFFICE

BOX 63063 KANEOHE BAY HI 96863-3063

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers from as Many Offerors as Possible

Market research was conducted by the Combat Camera Officer to determine the availability of cable and internet services. Said named officer contacted state entities such as the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) to verify the availability of network underground cable service and internet providers on Oahu. The result of the market research was that there are only two (2) licensed underground service providers – Time Warner and Hawaiian Telecom – according to the Hawaii State DCCA.

Upon conducting an internet search, as well as speaking with Ms. Tavori, Government Sales Representative for Hawaiian Telecom, it was determined that they are unable to provide wired line network cable services to non-residential customers at the time of this procurement. Prior to the next procurement of cable services, Hawaiian Telecom will again be contacted during the market research phase to determine the company’s ability to provide the required services. If the company is able to provide non-residential cable and internet services at that time, then it is noted and the company is aware that they would need to install the appropriate infrastructure to include obtaining any necessary permits required for an undertaking of this size.

Additionally, a response was received to the intent to sole source announcement that was posted on FedBizOps on 31 January 2013, from Tornado Base High Speed Wireless Data and IPTV services on 15 February 2013. Their solution involved attaching a mechanism to the fiber optic line that runs to the base which would transmit the internet connection and television broadcasts wirelessly to the buildings requiring service. This solution was presented to the base G-6 for comment. The response was that the Tornado solution may be a viable solution in regards to services to the barracks and smaller organizations on base, but a constant commercial wireless internet/television broadcast would pose a security concern to any classified spaces that currently have wired cable television. Therefore, the Tornado solution would not be a viable solution for the base-wide cable IDIQ.

Above-ground service providers were not contacted as the basic requirements for maintaining the appearances of historical properties and requirements that do not allow changes to historically significant buildings on MCBH as would be required for the installation of above-ground based services.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

The Contracting Officer will determine the anticipated cost to the Government of the services covered by this J&A to be fair and reasonable based on analysis of the contractor’s price proposal including backup information supporting the price reasonableness by comparing with prior similar contracts (e.g. M00318-08-D-0016), negotiating a lower price point based on their initial quote, and other market research.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition.

If another media company emerges by the next market research phase associated with this requirement offers underground cable and internet services, Regional Contracting Office Hawaii in coordination with the Combat Camera section, Operations and Training Directorate will assess whether competition for future information requirements is required and/or feasible.