Redacted Attachment 1 Exception to Fair Opportunity Final dated 17 Dec 2024.pdf

36C244-25-AP-0156

Effective Date: 03/15/2023 Page 1 of 4 Revision: 02 Acquisition ID#: 36C244-25-AP-0156

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Justification and Approval

For Exception to Fair Opportunity Memo

Acquisition Plan Action ID: 36C244-25-AP-0156 2237:

1. Contracting Activity:

Department of Veterans Affairs, Regional Procurement Office-East (RPO-E), Network Contracting Office 4 (NC0 4) provides contracting support for DVA, Veterans Integrated Service Network 4 (VISN 04), at Lebanon VA Medical Center (LVAMC).

2. Description of Action:

The proposed action is for the award of a brand-name, firm fixed price task order for– the Kahua product available under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) Government Wide- Acquisition Contract (GWAC) contract. The period of performance is for a base plus four one-year option periods.

Services include a complete project management information system to be used by the Engineering Department at the Lebanon VAMC. The procurement will be set-aside for Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs).

Both authorized resellers for Kahua are Vendor Information Page (VIP) certified SDVOSBs and the preferred vehicle is the IDIQ contracts on SEWP.

Four Points Technology, LLC (Four Points Technology) NNG15SD22B

RedHawk IT Solutions, LLC (RedHawk IT) NNG15SD38B

3. Description of Supplies or Services:

The proposed action is to provide the Lebanon VA Medical Center (LVAMC) with a complete

Software as a Service Project Management Information System (PMIS). This shall include training along with the subscription to the Lebanon Engineering Group. The system shall be a collaborative cloud – based communication and project management information system for the engineering and construction community. Software must be FedRamp approved with an existing VA Authority to Operate ( ATO) in order to follow VA SAAS Requirements. The total estimated value of the proposed action is for a base period of one-year plus 4 option years.

Effective Date: 03/15/2023 Page 2 of 4 Revision: 02 Acquisition ID#: 36C244-25-AP-0156

4. Statutory Authority: The statutory authority permitting an exception to fair opportunity is Section 41 U.S.C. 4106(c) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 16.505(b)(2)(i):

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(A): The agency need for the supplies or services is so urgent that providing a fair opportunity would result in unacceptable delays.

( X ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(B): Only one awardee is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services ordered are unique or highly specialized.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(C): The order must be issued on a sole-source basis in the interest of economy and efficiency because it is a logical follow-on to an order already issued under the contract, provided that all awardees were given a fair opportunity to be considered for the original order.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(D): It is necessary to place an order to satisfy a minimum guarantee.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(E): For orders exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, a statute expressly authorizes or requires that the purchase be made from a specified source”.

The statutory authority permitting an exception to fair opportunity for this action is 38 U.S.C.

8127(c), known as the Veterans First Contracting Program which provides the authority to directly contract with a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) or a Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB).

5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above:

The Lebanon VA Medical Center does not currently have a PMIS solution in place to maintain conformity, reliability, accessibility and increase the efficiency of the operations of the facility and engineering section of the campus on a complete and comprehensive scale.

Kahua was selected for its existence as a web-based subscription and compatibility with existing software packages used within the VA. Kahua is compliant with the VA in which it is the only SAAS approved PMIS product that is currently FedRamp approved and has a VA Authority to Operate that will fill our requirement.

This is a brand name justification in support of FAR 11.105, Items Peculiar to One Manufacturer.

Based on extensive market research it was determined that limited competition is viable among authorized resellers for this brand name item. The brand name Kahua is the only PMIS software that has a VA ATO – Authority to Operate and is FedRamp approved that can meet the comprehensive needs of the requirement.

During Market research, several other vendors were researched such as Autodesk Build, however Autodesk build is not FedRamp Authorized nor has a VA ATO.

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6. Efforts to Obtain Competition:

A” brand name or equal” RFQ has been posted to SEWP on 11 December 2024. Since there are two known NASA SEWP V resellers for this requirement, it will be posted on NASA SEWP V as a SDVOSB set aside to allow for all potential authorized providers to submit a quote. Any “equal” product submitted must clearly match the solution from Kahua to be considered valid by demonstrating the ability to meet all the key specifications in the Statement of Work and the “equal” product must be found on the FEDRAMP marketplace to be eligible for award.

There is no competition anticipated for this acquisition outside the Kahua brand name as no other sources have been identified to meet the Government’s minimum requirements.

7. Actions to Increase Competition: The Government will continue to conduct market research to ascertain if there are changes in the marketplace that would enable future actions to be competed. The requirement will be competed amongst SDVOSBs available on SEWP on a “brand name or equal” basis.

8. Market Research: Please see Market Research Report in eCMS tagged as P02. There are two known authorized resellers authorized for Kahua: Four Points Technology and RedHawk.

All authorized vendors are verified in VIP as SDVOSB’s and are found to have SEWP contracts.

At this point, there are no known substitutes for the Kahua solution.

The GWAC vehicle offers the best pricing and there are 36 SDVOSB contract holders in SEWP.

9. Other Facts: N/A

10. Technical and Requirements Certification: I certify that the supporting data under my cognizance, which are included in this justification, are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

11. Determination that Anticipated Cost is Fair and Reasonable: A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable:

NASA SEWP pricing is already determined to be fair and reasonable at time of award on the base contract. The Contracting officer will document any further determinations on the award documentation for this action.

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