N64498_02332001100 (1).pdf

J&A Number: 0233-20-011-00

Code: 0233

P.R. Number: 20-S D-054

SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL

FOR USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

JUSTIFICATION

1. Contracting Activity

The Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division

(NSWCPD), Code 0233

2. Description of Action Being Approved

Award of a Firm-Fixed-Price purchase order for conductivity sensors, transmitters and associated equipment on a sole source basis to Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc.

3. Description of the Supplies or Services

The procurement is for the purchase of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) S80 conductivity and resistivity sensors, X80 conductivity transmitters and associated equipment to meet Navy application requirements for the Salinity Monitoring System. The equipment and associated estimated costs are as follows:

Equipment Part Numbers Unit Cost Qty Total Cost

1380300 – “Conductivity Sensor – Brass S80N” $595,800

1380310 – “Conductivity Sensor – SST S80N” $79,440

1380302 – “Resistivity Sensor – Brass S80N” $59,580

1380350 - "Transmitter - X80N" $209,250

1380320 - "Conductivity Test Sensor 5 micro-Siemens " $14,784

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE CENTER

PHILADELPHIA DIVISION

5001 SOUTH BROAD STREET

PHILADELPHIA PA 19112-1403

IN REPLY REFER TO:

1380321 - "Conductivity Test Leads Assembly Sensor" $14,460

9310062 - "Fitting, Plug 3/4" NPT Stainless Steel" $960

1380355 - "Benchtop Stand for X80N" $840

TOTAL $975,114

The estimated value is $975,114. The period of performance is 6 months after contract award, there are no option quantities or periods. This order is anticipated to be fully funded using FY20

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

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition

41 U.S.C. 1901(e)(2), a sole source acquisition under the authority of Simplified Procedures for

Certain Commercial Items, as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation FAR Subpart

13.501(a).

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority

Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division awarded, on a sole source basis, service contract N6449819P5291 in FY19 in the amount of $586,475 to Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc.

(ECD) to physically modify their commercially available sensors and transmitter design to fit current navy architecture aboard the Class ships. The new, modified equipment is designed to fit in existing Salinity equipment, which is familiar to ships force. The scope of contract N6449819P5291 states “The Contractor shall provide engineering and technical services required to develop and test sensors and transmitters for use by the US NAVY for planned installation onboard Class in FY 2022.” ECD is the sole manufacturer of this modified design and no other vendors sell these part numbers.

Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division subsequently awarded, on a sole source basis contract N6449819P4043 in FY19 in the amount of $75,000 for these exact modified sensors and transmitters for ship board testing. The cost of the equipment from N6449819P4043 is comparable to the cost of the equipment in this Purchase Request because NWSCPD provided the required sensor cable assembly to ECD in contract N6449819P4043. The required cable assemblies provided to ECD are manufactured by Trek Connect. The cost of the required cable assembly $1,436.18 per assembly. That additional cost must be applied to each sensor in this procurement.

In order for another company to be able to provide the required supplies, they would need to provide engineering services to design, program, build and test a new conductivity sensor and a new conductivity analyzer which would cost an estimated $3,674,480. The stated cost and time estimate is only for non-recurring engineering services and does not include cost of materials for onsite lab testing, ship prototyping, and environmental qualifications, and installation.

Candidates other than ECD would have needed to establish a systems engineering baselines to support liquid analytical process instrumentation configuration development, integration and testing. This estimate was derived by based on California engineer rates for a 24 month period of performance and a material/tooling estimate to build and test a new conductivity sensor and a new conductivity analyzer to have 316 stainless steel construction, field mountable, concentric electrodes, digital communication between sensor and transmitter, input for two sensors per transmitter, backlit screen, HART communication, ingress protection of IP68, operating temperature of +140°F, single point and two-point calibration, temperature calibration, serial number and calibration data stored in sensor, two 4-20mA outputs, three Form "C" relays, time based graphing, and features and setpoints of a Programmable Logic Controller. The estimated cost listed would not be recovered through competition.

The current timeline for Salinity Monitoring installation does not allow for new technology development. This system requires an established technology repackaged and tested for Navy application and steam plant environment survivability. The Salinity Monitoring System is part of a larger LHD Midlife Modernization effort that has a strict schedule of availabilities for installations. Salinity is to be installed concurrently with PACS, SCD-11818, another installation effort within the LHD Midlife Modernization effort, and must be ready to be installed concurrently with the system in FY-22.

Failure to award this contract to Electro-Chemical Devices would result in the inability to submit

SCD-21999 for Phase III approval due to installation materials lacking required environmental qualifications. Delay in Phase III approval would result in a delay of scheduled installation aboard the in FY-22. Failure to award this contract would result in definite failure of scheduled installation aboard the in FY-22 and failure of all scheduled installations aboard the class through FY-26 due to time and cost for environmental qualification, design review, approval, contract award, and mass production of the equipment.

These products are currently only available to purchase through Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc.

Based on the foregoing, Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc. is the only source capable of providing the required items.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers from as Many Offerors as Practicable conducted market research in 2019 prior to award of contract N6449819P529l through a survey and analysis of alternative equipment brands that are available in industry. The thorough analysis reviewed the available brands to see if there were any possible alternatives.

Additionally, several companies were surveyed to see if they would be able to provide a satisfactory solution. These companies included and Electro-

Chemical Devices, Inc. At the time of the award of contract N6449819P5291, Electro-Chemical

Devices, Inc. was the only vendor that offered commercially available sensors and transmitter bodies made from 316 stainless steel with 316 stainless steel sensor electrodes. The digital signal of the sensor, user selectable set points of the transmitter’s outputs and displayed information meets the control requirements for the Navy. No other companies exist to satisfy the need. Based on the solicitation and award of contract N6449819P5291, this request is a continuation of previous efforts completed by Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc. Prior to this request, NSWCPD conducted market research to see if any other vendors sold these part numbers. At this time, Electro-Chemical Devices, Inc. is the sole distributor of this equipment.

A Request for Information (RFI) was posted on SAM (https://beta.sam.gov/) on 21 July 2020 with a closing date of 05 August 2020. No responses were received by the closing date of the synopsis.

The proposed acquisition was synopsized via SAM (https://beta.sam.gov/) on 13 August 2020, in accordance with FAR Part 5.2. No responses were received by the closing date 19 August 2020 of the synopsis.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Costs

The Contracting Officer has determined that the costs to the Government for the supplies covered by this justification are fair and reasonable. The contractor will submit a formal price quotation with other than certified cost or pricing data and sufficient information to support the accuracy and reliability of the estimate. The contractor’s proposal will be reviewed by experienced technical analysts and contract specialists with the aid of necessary field pricing support. The PCO will use cost and pricing analysis as the basis for negotiating a fair and reasonable price.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Competition

NSWCPD will continue to monitor the marketplace and identify potential sources of the supplies identified in this Justification. Any sources discovered that can potentially satisfy this specific procurement will be taken into account for any future requirements.