NF-FM7030-21-01798_JnA Brand Name Only_Redacted.pdf

Version 2.0

BRAND NAME JUSTIFICATION

FOR AN ORDER/BPA EXCEEDING MICRO-PURCHASE THRESHOLD

AND UP TO THE SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION THRESHOLD

(AUTHORITY: FAR 8.405-6)

NF-FM7030-21-01798

This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Multiple Award Schedule Program.

1. Agency and contracting activity.

Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Office of Acquisition and Grants (AGO), Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Acquisition and Procurement, Information Technology Division (ITD), Woods Hole, MA.

2. Description of supplies or services required to meet agency needs (including the estimated value).

This is a brand name justification for a new requirement. The ITD proposes to enter into a contract on a basis of other than full and open competition in support of the NEFSC and NOAA’s Office of the Chief Information Officer’s (OCIO) mission. The purchase will be for 226 Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 tablets with Samsung Knox Suite Enterprise Edition. The estimated dollar value is .

3. Identification of the limited source(s) to be solicited.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 Tablet SM-T570NZKEN20 (WiFi) (128GB)

4. Authority and supporting rationale. The contracting officer has determined the following circumstance justifies limiting the source under FAR 8.405-6 and as supported below:

Urgent and compelling - FAR 8.405-6 (a)(1)(i)(A) - An urgent and compelling need exists for the supplies or services, and following the procedures would result in unacceptable delays.

In October 2021, the Defense Information Services Agency (DISA) plans to release updates to all current Samsung Android Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs), which will ban the use of Android legacy devices. This ban is due to the end of support by Google for legacy mobile device manager (MDM) management. Google MDM is integrated with MaaS360, the OCIO’s Unified Messaging Services’ (UMS) administered MDM management.

In addition to this ban, the Samsung Android 12 STIG, which is expected to be released in late 2021, will include only Android Enterprise deployment. The OCIO’s UMS will support the current Android Enterprise operating system and the one prior.

All Samsung devices that can support Android Enterprise, which are currently deployed using legacy management Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), should be upgraded to Android Enterprise as soon as possible. Samsung devices that cannot support Android Enterprise should be replaced before October 2021.

NF-FM7030-21-01798

The NEFSC currently deploys the Samsung Galaxy Tab Active [SM-T390NZKAXAR (WiFi)] and the Samsung Galaxy Tab Active2 [SM-T397UZKAXAA (WiFi and LTE)] tablets. The Tab Active tablet runs Android 5.1.1 and the Tab Active2 tablet runs Android 7.1. Both of the Tab Active and Tab Active2 operating system versions do not support Android Enterprise. These operating systems are also not the current Android operating system or the one prior, and are therefore, not supported by the OCIO’s UMS.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 tablets are installed with Samsung Knox Suite Enterprise Edition. Samsung Knox Suite integrates with Android Enterprise. Knox Suite provides IT administrators with mobile device management solutions for the entire device lifecycle that are secure, efficient, and simple. Knox Suite also allows IT administrators to apply military-grade security, robust data protection, and device management, monitoring and control. The Tab Active and Tab Active2 are both installed with Knox Custom Configurator, Samsung’s legacy management API.

All tablets deployed by the NEFSC will be banned at the end of September 2021.

Item(s) peculiar to one manufacturer (including brand name) - FAR 8.405-6(b) –

Samsung Knox Suite is only offered for Flagship Samsung devices, which includes the Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 and Samsung Knox Suite meets the mandates of the OCIO’s UMS in that it is a Flagship Samsung Galaxy device, a Samsung SAFE device, and is patched quarterly.

Samsung Knox Suite integrates with UMS’s MDM application, MaaS360, and offers configuration tools to allow seamless and identical distribution of applications onto multiple tablets. Samsung Knox Suite allows for disabling a device in the case of loss. Samsung Knox Suite offers a customized and automatically distributed list of applications to ensure those applications that are not authorized are unable to be installed.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Active3 is the generational upgrade of the NEFSC deployed Samsung Galaxy Tab Active and Tab Active2, both with Knox Custom Configurator, Samsung’s legacy management API. The Tab Active3 is the only Samsung Flagship device that has a military specification MIL-STD-810H, anti-shock protection, and an IP68 water-resistance rating. The Tab Active3 S-Pen is IP68-rated, allowing data collection at-sea or in the field during all weather and infrastructure conditions.

5. Market Research

The MiTAC N630 is an Android Enterprise Recommended device, but it is not a Samsung Galaxy Flagship device. The MiTAC N630 would not offer the Samsung Knox Suite security and MDM integration with OCIO’s UMS MaaS360 and STIG control mandates. The 10.1” display will prevent NEFSC at-sea or in the field staff from holding the device in one hand. This will prevent sampling and data entry collection occurring simultaneously which will result in the loss of fisheries management data.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A is a Samsung Galaxy Flagship device, a Samsung SAFE device, and is patched quarterly. The Samsung Galaxy Tab A is not MIL-STD-810H, does not have anti-shock protection, and does not have an IP68 water-resistance rating. The Tab A does not have a S-pen that is IP68-certified. These specifications and ratings are mission critical for data collection in the