P03 - JOFOC - Over SAT - Feenics PACS - fully signed.pdf

Attachment 7: Request for Sole Source Justification >SAT

VHAPG Part 806.3 OFOC Page 1 of 5

Revision: 01

Effective Date: 04/01/23

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Justification and Approval (J&A)

For

Other Than Full and Open Competition (>SAT)

Acquisition Plan Action ID: 36C259-23-AP-1054 RPOW Tracking ID: 2023-06-26T07:39:34

1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs, NCO 19, Supply 2 team (6162 S. Willow

Dr., Suite 300, Greenwood Village, Colorado 80111) on behalf of the Montana VA Healthcare

System (3687 Veterans Dr., Ft. Harrison, MT 59636)

2237: Not yet available

2. Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Processed:

The Montana VA Healthcare System has an urgent need to replace their Ft. Harrison VAMC’s current physical access control system (PACS) that has been continuously failing in multiple buildings on the campus throughout several months. Although the facility has made multiple attempts to contact the vendor of their current PACS, Johnson Controls, they were notified of a national work stop order. As a result, the facility has been unable to find any quick solutions to resolve the ongoing issues and has determined the best course of action would be to replace the current PACS with a new one.

This requirement is for a one-year firm-fixed-price contract..

3. Description of Supplies/Services Required to Meet the Agency’s Needs:

The estimated value of the proposed action is $692,393.00.

This requirement will include transitioning to the Feenics Keeps V3 AWS Enterprise GOV Cloud system, replacement of all front-end controllers and all access control boards, provision of battery back-up equipment for access control and iCLASS SE cards for non-essential personnel and visitors as well as fees for licensing, installation and programming.

The Feenics system has been determined to be best option for the Ft. Harrison replacement PACS requirement due to this system having already been implemented in the leased buildings of two of

Montana HCS’s community-based outpatient clincs (CBOCs). Transitioning Ft. Harrison VAMC to the same system would facilitate management and monitoring of multiple campuses through one platform and streamline processes for PACS assistance and maintenance.

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other than Full and Open Competition:

(X) (1) Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy

Agency Requirements per 41 USC §3304(a)(1) as implemented by FAR 6.302-1;

(2) Unusual and Compelling Urgency per 41 USC §3304(a)(2) as implemented by FAR 6.302-2;

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Effective Date: 04/01/23

(3) Industrial Mobilization, Engineering, Developmental or Research Capability or Expert Services per 41 USC §3304(a)(3) as implemented by FAR 6.302-3;

(4) International Agreement per 41 USC §3304(a)(4) as implemented by FAR 6.302-4

(5) Authorized or Required by Statute per 41 USC §3304(a)(5) as implemented by FAR 6.302-5;

(6) National Security per 41 USC §3304(a)(6) as implemented by FAR 6.302-6;

(7) Public Interest per 41 USC §3304(a)(7) as implemented by FAR 6.302-7;

5. Demonstration that the Contractor’s Unique Qualifications or Nature of the Acquisition

Requires the Use of the Authority Cited Above (applicability of authority):

The primary component of this requirement is the Feenics Keep V3 AWS Enterprise GOV Cloud platform and software. The developer of this system, ACRE Security, has identified Facility

Improvement Corporation (FICO) as the sole distributor and authorized installer for the entire state of Montana. No other vendor would be able to provide the services and products requested in order to meet the needs of this requirement.

FICO has also provided authorized distributor letters from each of the manufacturers of the lessor items in this requirement.

The station has indicated a need to acquire and implement a new PACS as soon as possible due to potential risk to employees, patients, and visitors that is inherently associated with a failing access control system. The sense of urgency for this requirement is further emphasized by the amount of time it will take to complete the transition to a new PACS. Market research has indicated the replacement of a PACS can take several months for a single building. The amount of time to fully complete this requirement will be significantly longer due to this requirement including six buildings. The ability to sole source this requirement would significantly reduce the amount of time to award and implement. If posted, the duration of the solicitation period would have be several weeks at a minimum in order to accommodate multiple vendors conducting site visits. By comparison, FICO has a working knowledge of the campus and has provided a comprehensive estimate of products and services needed with a timeline to prioritize the buildings with the greatest need.

6. Description of Efforts Made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as deemed practicable:

As indicated by the developer of the primary component of this requirement, only one vendor is authorized to distribute, install and support Feenics products within Montana.

A notice of intent to sole source was posted on SAM.gov in May 2023 for this requirement. No responses or protests were received as a result of this posting.

7. Determination by the CO that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and

Reasonable:

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Effective Date: 04/01/23

The final contract price has been determined to be fair and reasonable by a comparison of historical pricing for similar commodities. Price is determined to be fair and reasonable based on evidence of necessary expenditures and comparison to contracts awarded with NCO 19 with the last two years:

• 36C25922P1182 – $769,641.60

• 36C25922P1000 – $411,575.00

• 36C25922P0783 – $516,912.00

Discussion with vendors who commonly provide similar services and products indicates implementation of the new PACS on one building can take up to four months to complete. Since this requirement will include six buildings on the campus we can anticipate full implementation in all buildings will take up to a year to complete. Awarding to an out-of-state vendor would very likely include significant additional costs such as airfare, lodging, and per diem for the vendor’s staff that need to be onsite throughout the year it would take to implement the new PACS. By comparison, awarding to a vendor such as FICO – located within the same state as the requiring facility – would significantly decrease any costs associated with travel.

8. Description of the Market Research Conducted and the Results, or a Statement of the

Reasons Market Research Was Not Conducted:

Documentation identifying FICO as the sole source for Feenics products was included with the initial documents for this requirmenet. As a result, initial market research was conducted primarily to determine the most accurate NAICS code, verify price reasonableness, and identify typical lead times from awarded contracts for similar requirements. Market research was conducted through

VIP, DSBS, FPDS, SAC and NAC although no additional vendors were identified. Due to the proprietary licensing requirements and urgent nature of the requirement, additional market research was limited to reviewing the details of the quote provided by FICO.

9. Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other than Full and Open Competition:

FICO was able to provide authorized distributor letters from several manufacturers whose products will be utilized with the Feenics Keep V3 PACS infrastructure. The products that will be used in this acquisition are considered approved products on the official Approved Products List (APL) generated by the Federal Information Processing Standard 201 (FIPS 201) Evaluation Program.

(FIPS 201 Approved Products List - Physical Access Control System Components (idmanagement.gov) This program tests and certifies services and commercial products used in physical access control systems to ensure the sequence of products used will work together successfully in accordance with

Federal standards. Currently, the APL for PACS components is very limited in the number of approved PACS infrastructures and their corresponding validation system components. The number of viable options on the APL is further limited due to the Fort Harrison facility already using the HID Global validation system component in their current PACS. Keeping the same validation system with corresponding hardware and equipment from the current PACS to the new

PACS is important in order to ensure functionality is maintained as much as possible across all buildings on the Fort Harrison campus during transition from one product to another. The list of viable options for a replacement PACS is limited further by vendor proximity to the requiring facility. As stated in the previous section for price reasonableness, awarding to a vendor within relative close proximatey to Fort Harrison can eliminate a number of costs associated with travel of

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Effective Date: 04/01/23 staff to and from the facility during the year of installation. Although a number of vendors were foud in GSA eLibrary for MAS contracts for related services and products none were located in

Montana or nearby states.

Installation of Feenics products is solely through the authorized distributors of the Feenics developer, ACRE Security. Thus, there would be no possibility of competition for this requirement even if opened up to full and open for vendors of all sizes. FICO has been identified as the sole distributor and installer for the state of Montana.

The identified contractor has completed work within two leased VA facilities within the Montana

Healthcare System. As result, the contractor has direct experience with VA processes relative to implementing the Feenics system and incorporating VA employee PIV badges for access.

The urgency to acquire a replacement PACS for the Fort Harrison VA Medical Center has escalated recently on several occasions. The station partners report the following issues have occurred due to their current PACS failing and the owner of the system, Johnson Controls, refusing to provide any assistance:

• Police services have lost the ability to manage the system in order to update PIV cards for access to the buildings for new employees and disable PIV cards for former employees.

• Loss of functionality of some areas of the buildings has compromised the security VA staff and patients. Some doors do not respond to the PIV cards and are therefore being propped open by

VA staff in order to be able to access certain areas. However, this has also become an increased safety risk due to several instances where an irate Veteran has entered limited access areas demanding medication.

• Sporadic PACS failure has caused VA employees to lose access to critical equipment such as the pharmacy cabinets that manage medication.

• One of the buildings has lost all functionality. As a result, residents have not been able to access or lock their assigned rooms. Contingency procedures were implemented by staff to allow for normal operations. Female residents have recently expressed feeling a sense of vulnerability and being at risk in their work place due to the PACS failures.

10. Listing of Sources that Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition:

Facility Improvement Corporation (FICO) - NE8NUJUKUDM9 – Small business

11. A Statement of the Actions, if any, the Agency May Take to Remove or Overcome any

Barriers to Competition before Making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required:

Requirement cannot be competed due to only one source being able to provide for the requirement.

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Effective Date: 04/01/23

12. Requirements Certification: I certify that the requirement outlined in this justification is a Bona

Fide Need of the Department of Veterans Affairs and that the supporting data under my cognizance, which are included in the justification, are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Jose Rivera-Hernandez Date

Chief Engineer

Montana VA Healthcare System

13. Approvals in accordance with the VHAPM Part 806.3 OFOC SOP:

a. Contracting Officer or Designee’s Certification (required): I certify that the foregoing justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Douglas D. Buffington Date

Branch Chief, Supply 2

NCO 19

b. One Level Above the Contracting Officer (Required over SAT but not exceeding $750K):

I certify the justification meets requirements for other than full and open competition.

Jason Thomas Date

Division 2 Chief

NCO 19