NSWCPD Consolidation D-F No. 0222-25-033-00.1 - SEA 025C -REDACTED.pdf

D&F No: 0222-25-033-00.1

DETERMINATION AND FINDINGS

AUTHORITY TO CONSOLIDATE CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

Upon the basis of the following findings pursuant to the authority of 15 U.S.C. § 657q, as implemented in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 7.107-2 and the Navy Marine Corps Acquisition Regulation Supplement (NMCARS) Subpart 5207.107-2, it is hereby determined that the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD) engineering support services of HM&E Control Systems Support Services requirements may be consolidated.

FINDINGS

1. Identification of Requiring Agency and Contracting Activity

This Determination and Findings has been prepared by the NSWCPD, a contracting activity under the authority of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA).

2. Nature/Description of Action

NSWCPD is planning to issue a single solicitation for engineering and technical services required to support development, modernization, acquisition and life cycle maintenance for the Machinery Control Systems (MCS) for USS Freedom (LCS -1), USS Independence (LCS-2), USS Constellation (FFG-62), Improved Navy Lighterage System (INLS), Multi-Mission Surface Combatant (MMSC), Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF), Navy Fleet Oilers (T-AO)s, and other ship classes of U.S. Navy surface ships under the NSWCPD Code 512 purview. The work to be performed includes all activities associated with various Control Systems, computer program development, Risk Management Framework (RMF) Support, ybersecurity, testing, equipment harvesting and installation on both in-service and new ship construction. Tasks include performing systems engineering analysis in order to interface control systems with other new or modified shipboard systems; troubleshooting control system hardware issues at the Land Based Engineering Site/Test Facilities in Philadelphia, PA as well as sustainment and fleet modernization efforts around the world; upgrading the cybersecurity features of the existing and future control system variants; upporting the RMF process; addressing obsolete hardware with the most cost effective solutions possible. This procurement action will consolidate these requirements which had been previously contracted separately by one (1) ontractor, Green Expert Technology Inc. (GreenXT) as detailed below.

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE CENTER

PHILADELPHIA DIVISION

5001 SOUTH BROAD STREET

PHILADELPHIA PA 19112-1403

IN REPLY REFER TO:

CUI

NDI 4X596 Small Yes The Informatics Applications Group, Inc 3CSK4 Small Yes GreenXT 6J8P0 Small Yes ASR International Corp. 0PRK4 Small No

Of the six (6) responses received, five (5) were determined to appear to be technically capable.

Of the five (5) technically capable responses, all five (5) are Small Business concerns.

Program History: Historically, the MCS, computer program development, RMF Support, ybersecurity, testing, equipment harvesting and installation were competed under the

NSWCPD Code 50 White Collar Multiple Award Contract and awarded to GreenXT. Below is the recent history:

a. Machinery Control Systems

In 2022, when Task Order No. N6449822F3116 was competed, there were four (4) offers received in response to the solicitation, all of which were from Small Businesses and found to be technically acceptable.

b. Cybersecurity Support and Machinery Control Systems

In 2022, when Task Order No. N6449822F3122 was competed, there was only one (1) offer received in response to the solicitation, which was from a Small Business. This Task Order was competed in the MAC environment, in which five (5) Small Businesses had the opportunity to submit offers. At the time of solicitation, four (4) no-bid submissions were received, all with Unavailable personnel for period of performance

c. Cyber Security and Machinery Controls Consolidated Maintenance System (MCCMS) Support

In 2022, when Task Order No. N6449822F3133 was competed, there were four (4) offers received in response to the solicitation, all of which were from Small Businesses. Of the four

(4) offers received, three (3) were found to be technically acceptable.

Small Business Impacts: NSWCPD has considered the potential impacts of this consolidation to Small Businesses. As noted above, market research indicates a reasonable expectation of obtaining offers from two (2) or more responsible Small Business concerns that are competitive in terms of fair market prices, quality, and delivery. Therefore, in accordance with FAR 19.502-2(a), this requirement shall be set-aside for Small Businesses. Thus, in accordance with 15 U.S.C. § 657q(c)(1)(D) and FAR 7.107-2(a)(4), NSWCPD has found that this consolidation in-and-of-itself will ultimately have no negative impacts on contracting with Small Business

• Having one SeaPort Task Order with standardized tenns and conditions;

• Having a single Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO), Contract Specialist, Contrncting

Officer's Representative (COR), and Contract Program Manager for the service perfonnance; and

• Promoting consistency and accountability in the execution of the Statement of Work

(SOW).

Consolidation of the three Task Order requirements ensures that program management, engineering, technical, and logistic support to U.S. Navy HM&E systems, including engineering and technical services required to support development, modernization, acquisition and life cycle maintenance for the MCS, are managed under a single contract requirement. Such efficiencies promote consistency and compliance with MCS and cybersecurity suppo1t processes and procedures. Having these requirements managed under one SeaP01t Task Order will significantly improve the quality of the Control SystelllS Testing , Integration Engineering Services, and Cybersecurity and Information Assurance, and will substantially benefit mission execution of the fleet and warfighter.

Workforce Benefits: The consolidation of the effo1ts will enable the Contractor to provide a better and more efficient service by leveraging the technical capabilities of its workforce.

Consolidating the required effo1t under a single SeaP01t solicitation would provide an overall increase in workforce stability and provide consistent workforce expectations across staff suppoiting the effo1t. One ente1prise contract requirement is more beneficial than multiple similar contracts requirements since there will be a specific point of contact for both the Government and Contractor.

Reduction in Acquisition Cycle Times: Duplication of processes and document requirements is a significant strain on acquisition productivity. The proposed consolidation drastically reduces the documentation required to acquire the se1vices desired thereby reducing the technical, contractual, and administrative burden of conducting multiple simultaneous competitions. There is significant benefit in consolidating the Task Orders, as removal of duplicative acquisition steps (e.g., acquisition planning, solicitation, evaluation, negotiations, etc.) will compress the acquisition cycle time by at least 12-months from alternative acquisition strategies. This estimate is based on the average time to conduct a best value source selection combined with the average manpower required to evaluate multiple proposals for each requirement. Consolidation reduces acquisition, program management, contracts, and legal manpower requirements. Consolidating these requirements creates efficiencies through the reduction of Government pre-award solicitation development and proposal evaluation, as well as post-award monitoring, administration, and closeout.

Cost Savings: Pursuing these contract requirements as separate actions would incur an estimated t over a five (5) year period, as outlined below.

SOURCE SELECTION INFORMATION -SEE FAR 2.101 and FAR 3.104

D&F No: 0222-25-033-00.1

a. Source Selection: Each competitive SeaP01i-NxG Task Order is estimated to cost � to award. With reducing the number of orders from three (3) to one (1) this could lead to a reduction of� in source selection costs.

b. Contract Administration: As of 14 Januaiy 2025, the three prior Task Orders under Contract No. N 644 9821D4017 included fifty-one ( 51) executed Task Order modifications over a two year period. Extrapolating that over a five yeai· contract period, it is estimated to be approximately 128 modifications.

o In addition, it is projected that ninety-five (95) modifications could have been eliminated if this was administered under one contract vehicle. The estimated cost to process a modification is SIIIIIIII, which would equate to a � reduction in administrative costs.

o There would also be a reduction in additional suppo1i staff administration if the Task Orders were consolidated. With three ask Orders in place, there is duplication of effo1is for the COR, Quality Assurance, Security, and Defense Contract Audit Agency suppoit. It is estimated that consolidation would result in approximately � in additional administrative cost savings.

c. Program Management: Using the average estimated fully burdened labor rates for the next five yeai·s for the Program Manager III (-) and Program Manager II (-), there would be additional costs to the Government of� if the contracts were not consolidated.

As depicted above, favorable cost impacts are expected to be realized by consolidating these efforts, estimated in a total of t over a five year period. Although these cost savings (approximately-% of the total estimated value of the consolidated contract requirements) would not alone qualify as "substantial" under FAR 7 .107-2( d)(l )(i), they do represent a quantifiable cost benefit of the consolidated approach in addition to the substantial non monetaiy benefits described above. Fmiher, this consolidation strategy is considered to be critical to the agency's mission success, in addition to providing maximum practicable paiiicipation by small business.

5. Alternate Acquisition Strategies

Prior to settling on the proposed acquisition strategy, NSWCPD considered an alternative contracting approach that would have involved a lesser degree of consolidation. The alternative approach considered was to maintain the status quo and continue issuing separate competitively awai·ded SeaPort Task Orders for the Machine1y Control System/Cybersecurity Suppoli requirements. The previous contracts were solicited competitively and received either one offer from GreenXT or multiple offers from Small Businesses. It is not practicable to continue to compete these efforts separately from each other. The execution of three separate Task Orders presents overall cost inefficiencies and delays to the Government. Separate GFE trncking mechanisms for each Task Order. A single Task Order would allow for one team, consisting of a prime and subcontractor(s), vice three teams under three separate Task Orders, to perfo1m the work providing for a quicker turnaround at a lower cost for the administrative management of the subcontractor( s) and the GFE.

Additionally, competing each requirement separately would cause undue delays, while consolidation allows for unification of requirements and streamlining of acquisition and technical effo1is. Utilizing average timelines to compete the requirements separately along with the manpower needed for each competition. The same Government personnel would be required to process each competition separately. Thus, the competitions would have to be staggered in a manner that would allow adequate time to support, delaying the timeline by approximately one year.

For the foregoing reasons, this consolidated approach is necessaiy and justified as the benefits to the Government through quality, schedule, workforce, acquisition cycle time, cost, and ultimately fleet readiness substantially exceed the benefits of the alternative acquisition approaches.

DETERMINATION

Based upon the foregoing findings, I hereby detennine that the consolidation of requirements described in such findings is necessaiy and justified, pursuant to 15 U.S.C § 657q, as implemented in FAR 7.107-2 and NMCARS 5207.170-2.