Mk12A Justification and Approval Redacted 20230926.pdf

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

March 2018 FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Page 3 of 5

I. Contracting Activity.

United States Air Force

AFNWC/PZBB

6008 Wardleigh Rd, Bldg 1580 Hill AFB, UT 84056 Contracting Officer:

Phone:

II. Nature and/or description of the action being processed.

A. Upon approval to use other than full and open competition procedures, the Air Force will issue a contract for the procurement of 396 Mk12A Arming and Fuzing Assembly (AFA) Silver Zinc batteries for the Minuteman III Missile.

Contract will be awarded to EaglePicher Technologies, LLC (EPT), C & Porter Streets, Joplin, MO 64801, Cage Code 81855.

B. Contract Type & Structure: An Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) supply contract with an anticipated Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) arrangement will be issued through qualification phase and a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) arrangement through production. The estimated award date is 1 August 2022 with performance and delivery expected to be completed by 31 August 2028. The funding type is AF Appropriation Code 3020, BP25 Replenishment Spares.

C. Type J&A: Individual

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs.

Under the contemplated contract, and based on the AF mission requirements, the purpose of this effort is to procure a minimum of 396 Mk12A AFA batteries, NSN 6130-01-467-8351, AF Specification Control Drawing (SCD) 201612428.

This includes 96 Qualification Units and 300 Production Units The estimated contract award date is 1 August 2022 with performance and delivery expected to be completed by 31 August 2028.

IV. Statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

10 USC 2304(c)(1) as implemented by FAR 6.302-1 - Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

A. The Mk12A AFA Batteries are comprised of silver-oxide and zinc plates. The plates are assembled dry leaving the battery not energized. The battery is activated by adding potassium hydroxide electrolyte into the dry cells to start the chemical reaction of the plates. This activation occurs remotely; a squib fires which pushes electrolyte from a reservoir into the cells. The cell plates are comprised of silver and zinc powder that are processed on screen mesh to formulate the plates. The manufacturing of silver-zinc batteries is extremely labor intensive. Deviations and problems can occur during any of the numerous, hand built steps of fabrication. This acquisition is for highly specialized customized equipment for the Minuteman III weapon system and EPT is currently the only source able to meet the AF's requirements as they are currently the only domestic manufacturer with experience producing squib activated silver

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

March 2018 FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Page 5 of 5

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

IAW FAR 6.302-1(a)(2)(ii), to have anyone other than EPT produce these batteries would result in a substantial duplication of cost to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition as well as unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agencies requirements.

The duplication of cost would come from several areas. First, the Government does not own the drawings for these batteries and would need to qualify their own design, The Government does not have an estimate of how purchasing design data would cost, but based on past experience, purchasing data can be very expensive. The Government does not intend to purchase any additional batteries in the future, so purchasing these specs from EPT would not be in the Governments best interest. In addition, another vendor would have to develop their own design that meets the requirements of the AF SCD 201612428, which would require 36-48 months or more to design, assemble/fabricate, test and qualify before production could commence. Also, another company would have to stand up a production line which would require training personnel and gathering any special tooling/materials needed to produce the batteries.

The delays would come from the fact that these batteries are needed by September 2025. Given this deadline and the demand of design qualification, no other company would be able to meet this deadline and having anyone else attempt to do so would result in unacceptable delays to the Government.

X. List of any sources that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

See Section VI above.

XI. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required.

The Government does not intend to purchase these batteries in the future. The intent of purchasing these batteries is to ensure the MMIII weapon system has an adequate amount of batteries available through the lifetime of the Mk12A Reentry Vehicle. These items will no longer be required following the end of the MMIII lifecycle.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my (our) signature(s) above, I (we) certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my (our) responsibility, is both accurate and complete.