N00174_FY24NOV1441.pdf

J&A Number: FY24-NOV14-41

Instrumentation associated with Phase 2 is identified below:

Thermal Gravimetric Analyzer (TGA) with Evolved Gas Analysis by Mass Spectrometry Simultaneous Differential Scanning Calorimetry/Thermogravimetric Analyzer (SDT) Thermal Mechanical Analyzer (TMA) Heat Flow Microcalorimeter (HFM) – TAM-IV #3

All instrumentation and parts shall be covered by a limited 12-month warranty for defects determined by the Seller to have developed under normal and proper use. Equipment delivery shall occur within 120 days of contract award, unless specified otherwise by the Seller.

Installation and basic operational training will be provided by a trained service engineer in accordance with manufacturer’s protocols, and should be scheduled less than 45 days from confirmed receipt of equipment on-site.

The Government’s minimum needs have been verified by the certifying technical and requirements personnel.

The estimated dollar value of this procurement is funds will be utilized for this procurement.

Estimated Dollar Value

Funding Type Thermal Suite Phase 1&2

CIP

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition

10 U.S.C. 3204 (a)(1), Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority

Nearly all current thermal analysis equipment in the that needs updated are products from TA Instruments. TA Instruments is the only manufacture and/or provider of all of the equipment and subcomponents needed to fulfill the government’s requirements for the full phase 1 and phase 2 upgrades. It is critical that remain with TA equipment as training time and costs would be significantly reduced as the new equipment and operating software are fully compatible and generally equivalent to existing instrumentation. Existing methods and protocols would be immediately transferable to new instruments without lengthy and costly modifications and/or validations. Lastly, historical raw data files would be accessible to the laboratory without maintaining a separate data archive and processing capability. The consistency of the equipment is essential to maintain data integrity of both past and future experimentation. The cost to reproduce the historical data using different equipment would be duplicative and thus not in the Government’s best interest.

J&A Number: FY24-NOV14-41

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

Market research was performed to identify major manufacturers of thermal analysis equipment.

In addition to general web-based searches, ThomasNet (http://www.thomasnet.com/) was also queried specifically to identify potential sources for all of the major equipment associated with the Thermal Analysis Suite. ThomasNet is a database where suppliers can publish their items to be purchased. This site is popular with posting for scientific equipment. This site is a comprehensive resource for finding information on suppliers of industrial products and services in North America. ThomasNet provides direct access to the detailed information needed to make a purchasing decision. Web-based evaluations for each of the identified sources revealed that only TA Instruments could manufacture and/or provide all of the equipment and sub-components associated with the Thermal Analysis Suite – Phase 1 and Phase 2.

To further broaden market research and to satisfy the requirements of DFARS PGI 206.302- 1(d), a Sources Sought notice was posted on SAM.gov from Thursday, 12 October 2023 to Friday, 27 October 2023 for a total of 15 days (Notice N0017424SN0005). The posting yielded only one (1) response from TA Instruments. TA Instrument’s response(s) was evaluated by R14, and verified results of the market research that identified the company as uniquely capable of manufacturing and/or providing all of the equipment and sub-components associated with the Thermal Analysis Suite, Phase 1 and Phase 2.

As required by FAR 5.203, 2 presolicitation notices (N0017424R0013,N0017424R0016) were publicized on SAM.gov on 5 December 2023 in which, 0 capability statements were received.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Costs

The Contracting Officer has determined that the anticipated cost to the Government for the supplies/services covered by the J&A will be fair and reasonable.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Competition

For the reasons set forth in Paragraph 5, NSWC IHD Contracts Department has no plans at this time to compete future contracts for the types of supplies/services covered by this document. If another potential source emerges, NSWC IHD Contracts Department will assess whether competition for future requirements is feasible.