Redacted J and A for MATEC.pdf

J&A AIR 2.6/21-177

CUI // REL TO USA

date of AV Lot 15 is . The continued negotiation, analysis and verification support from MATEC is essential to meet the aforementioned target award date. Furthermore, even after AV Lot 15 is awarded, the F-35 JPO will have additional requirements of high importance, such as AV Lot 16 and Lot 17 ECP negotiations and option exercise, and the planning and execution of AV Lot 18 and beyond procurement, all of which require MATEC support. The F-35 Program uses annual appropriations to fund aircraft production and procurement, thus requiring annual contract actions and approvals. To avoid further delays in these annual contracting actions, on-going MATEC support is required without a gap in service.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit from as Many Offerors as Practicable

This contract action was synopsized on the BetaSAM website from 31 December 2020 through 15 January 2021. The synopsis requested interested parties to submit their capability statements for purposes of determining whether to initiate a competitive procurement. Four responses were received before the end of synopsis period as shown in the table below

Vendor Name Capabilities F-35 JPO Experience ProPricer Experience BMC IT Support & Management No No Essnova Solutions IT & Administrative No No Strategic HR Solutions HR Resources No No Barclay Group Cost & Pricing No No

The requirements office reviewed all four capability statements submitted by the interested parties and determined that none meet the requirements as stipulated in the synopsis. BMC, Essnova and Strategic HR Solutions provide information technology services or human resource support and did not address F- 35 JPO specific or ProPricer experience, and therefore, do not meet the minimum requirements. Barclay provides cost and pricing analysis support, but did not address F-35 JPO specific experience, ProPricer experience or transition time to begin performance. On 4 March 2021, a teleconference was held with Jacob Barclay of Barclay Group to gain a better understanding of their capabilities. Mr. Barclay confirmed that they do not have experience in the specific areas identified in the synopsis, however, was interested in becoming familiar with the F-35 JPO analysis tools in preparation for any future opportunities. A Sources Sought Waiver was approved on 26 February 2021. Furthermore, research in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) Small Business Dynamic Search, shows there are no additional potential bidders capable of meeting all major requirements. There are three other companies with ProPricer (software tool used by the JPO and Lockheed Martin to price proposals and negotiation positions) experience, but all three lack specific F-35 JPO experience and knowledge, which would increase the transition and onboarding timelines for those companies.

The above market research shows that developing an alternative source to maintain the current level of support provided by MATEC would take approximately . This includes an estimated of transition and onboarding time to gain component familiarity, cost and pricing model development, and JPO ProPricer software proficiency. A delay in acquiring the needed support would significantly impact the Government's contract award timelines. Finalizing these negotiations on time is critical to ensuring continued performance under the Lot 15-17 actions, thereby avoiding production line impacts and minimizing the risk to production cost increases. Additionally, the JPO is within lead time for the planning phase of the AV Lot 18 and beyond contract and anticipate a Request for Proposal submission to the prime contractor in first quarter The AV Lot 18 and beyond contract is expected to be a larger procurement than the Current AV Lot 15-17 contract, therefore having MATEC’s continued expert support will enable successful execution of current and future F-35 production requirements. Based on this information, foregoing a sole-source contract to MATEC in order

J&A AIR 2.6/21-177

CUI // REL TO USA

to identify, develop, and qualify another source would negatively impact the operational capabilities of the USAF, USMC, and USN, as well as international Partners and FMS customers in the F-35 Program.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost

In accordance with FAR 15.402, the Contracting Officer shall ensure that all supplies and services provided under these contract actions are procured at a fair and reasonable price/cost. MATEC will submit a formal proposal with sufficient information to support the accuracy and reliability of proposed prices. Since this requirement is for a commercial item, FAR Part 15.403-1 Prohibition on Obtaining Certified Cost or Pricing Data applies, and Data Other than Certified Cost or Pricing Data in accordance with FAR Part 15.403-3 will be utilized. Experienced technical analysts and contract specialists will perform analyses of the contractor’s proposal in accordance with FAR 15.404. The Contracting Officer will use these analyses to determine and negotiate a fair and reasonable price.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition

The Government will continue to conduct market research to gauge marketplace capabilities for future requirements. This includes issuing a sources sought and surveying the market prior to soliciting any potential follow-on requirements for this effort. Additionally, the Government plans to capture best practices and lessons learned through CDRLs which can be applied to benefit future AV procurements.

Historical data associated with the tasks performed under this contract can be made available to interested parties upon request.