RFCU Exception to Fair Opportunity-Redacted.pdf

JUSTIFICATION for an EXCEPTION to FAIR OPPORTUNITY for the pla~ement of an order >$150K under a Multiple Award Contract (MAC)

Upon the basis of the following justification, I, David Roden, as Contracting Officer of SPAW ARSYSCEN, Pacific, hereby approve the Exception to Fair Opportunity Pursuant to FAR 16.505(b )(2). Orders that are set aside for small business do not require written justification per FAR l 6.505(b )(2)(ii).

JUSTIFICATION

l. Agency and Contracting Activity. Department of the Navy, SPA WARSYSCEN, Pacific.

2. Nature/Description of Action. This is a fair opportunity exception to place an order with Out of the Fog Rese~rch, LLC under multiple award contract number N 66001- l 6-D-0290. The task order number is TBD.

3. Description of Supplies/Services. The cunent Radio Frequency Conditioning Unit (RFCU), the OFRXF05, does not have any user repairable pa1ts. The entire unit itself needs to be replaced if prut of the unit fails. The goal of this work is to redesign the OFRXF05 so that it is easier to maintain with user replaceable parts. This is so that repairs and replacements inside the unit can be done by Navy personnel while on the ship. In addition, the Radio Frequency (RF) performance needs to be the same or better than the current unit and be backwards compatible (size, f01m, and function) with the current unit. The updated unit also needs to be designed to meet Military Standard requirements. Estimated value is base for the design and option for first aiticle for a total potential estimated value of $503K.

4. Identification of the Exception to Fair Opportunity. (FAR 16.505 (b)(2))

Identification/Justification for Exception:

D a. The agency need for services is of such urgency that providing fair opportunity would result in unacceptable delays.

D b. Only one such awardee is capable of providing such services required at the level of quality required because the services ordered are unique or highly specialized.

D c. The order must be issued on a sole-source basis in the interest of economy and efficiency as a logical follow-on to an order already issued under the MAC, provided that all the awardees were given fair opportunity to be considered for the original order.

D d. It is necessary to place an order to satisfy a minimum guarantee.

IZJ e. For orders exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, a statute expressly authorizes or requires that the purchase be made from a specified source.

15 U.S.C. 638(r)(l) states:

(b)(4) (b)(4)

"In the case of a small business concern that is awarded a funding agreement for Phase II of an

SBIR or STIR program, a Federal agency may enter into a Phase III agreement with that business concern for additional work to be performed during or after the Phase II period. "

Furthermore, 15 U.S.C. 638(r)(4) states:

"To the greatest extent practicable, Federal agencies and Federal prime contractors shall issue

Phase III awards relating to technology, including sole source awards, to the SBIR and STIR award recipients that developed the technology."

In accordance with the statutes cited above, this project is a continuation of the effort performed under SBIR Phase II.5 contract N66001-09-C-Ol l 9, with the same business concern that performed the previous effort.

5. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

Based on the hist01ic cost information cunently available, the contrading officer has adequate information to ensure that the cost to the government for this acquisition will be fair and reasonable.

6. Any Other Facts Supporting the Justification.

The nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited. The SBIR/STIR Programs are structured in three phases. Phase I (project feasibility) determines the scientific, technical and commercial merit and feasibility of the ideas submitted. Phase II (project development to prototype) is the major research and development effort, funding the prototyping and demonstration of the most promising Phase I projects. Phase III (commercialization) is the ultimate goal of the SBIR/STTR Programs. Because the Phase III work derives from, extends, or completes effo1ts performed under Phase I and Phase II, use of the authority cited is required.

This acquisition is continuation of efforts originating from multiple SBIR projects involving the same contractor (Out of the Fog Research, LLC). Choosing another vendor will result in excessive cost and time to the government. Due to Out of the Fog Research, LLC engineering data release being restricted by SBIR data rights, other vendors will have to duplicate research and development Out of the Fog Research, LLC completed.

At this time, another vendor would not be able to develop the hardware in question because they would not have access to the Technical Data Package (TDP). Out of the Fog Research, LLC still has SBIR data rights and are not at liberty to provide the·TDP to another vendor for development. The SBIR data rights are still valid per development Out of the Fog Research, LLC performed under Office ofNaval Research (ONR) Rapid Innovation Fund (RIF) N66001-09-C- 0119.

7. Actions Taken to Remove or Overcome Barriers that Led to the Exception to Fair Opportunity.

The Contracting Officer anticipates that competitors will enter the market once the product is commercialized. It is likely that future acquisitions will be competed using full and open competition and commercial item acquisition procedures. The Contracting Officer is not aware of any specific actions that would further remove barriers to competition.

(b)(6)

(b)(6)