JOFOC - GP20 Balloons - Redacted.pdf

SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION USING SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURES FOR THE ACQUISITION OF

COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES EXCEEDING THE SIMPLIFIED

ACQUISITION THRESHOLD (AUTHORITY: RFO 12.201-1, 41 U.S.C. 1901)

Identification Number: 142082-26-0182

1. Identification of the agency and contracting activity. The NOAA Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO) Eastern Acquisition Division proposes to enter into a contract on the basis of other than full and open competition using simplified procedures for the acquisition of commercial products in support of the Surface and Upper Air Division (SUAD) of the National Weather Service.

2. The nature and/or description of the action being approved.

This is a sole-source justification for a follow-on requirement to an existing Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract 1305M221DNWWE0006. The planned award type is an IDIQ contract that allows for the issuance of Firm-Fixed Price delivery orders. The government intends to award a follow-on IDIQ contract to Kaymont Consolidated Industries, Inc. (“Kaymont”).

3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs (including the estimated value).

An Aerological Sounding Balloon is a balloon used to carry radiosondes aloft. Radiosondes measure atmospheric temperature, humidity, pressure, wind speed, and wind direction from the surface to an altitude of approximately 30,000 meters. The radiosonde observations are a critical source of meteorological data that are used in the development of storm watches, warnings, weather forecasts, and aviation support, which support the NWS mission of protecting life and property. Aerological Sounding Balloons are launched at all 102 NWS Upper Air sites and allow the NWS Upper Air Program to accomplish its mission of supporting 78,000 radiosonde observations per year.

Aerological Sounding Balloons must perform under a variety of launch and flight weather conditions while providing an average ascent rate of five meters per second for accurate sensor measurements. The required GP20 Aerological Sounding Balloons (‘GP20 balloons’) are designated as General Purpose (GP) type with a two-digit numeric suffix designating the minimum bursting height in kilometers (20) above sea level. The balloons need to be able to perform across demanding environmental, transportation, and storage parameters, surviving extreme temperature exposures ranging from -60°C up to +60°C and must reliably support a standard flight payload up to 600 grams. Structurally, they are required to fulfill rigorous flight performance baselines, including an objective 90.0% minimum lot success rate, alongside strict physical constraints such as a mandatory 15.24 centimeter minimum neck length and an advanced biodegradable natural material composition that remains fully non-reactive to helium, hydrogen, or natural gas inflation variants.

Based on an estimated unit price of , for a total quantity of up to 95,000, this requirement for GP20 balloons has an estimated total award value of . The proposed strategy to satisfy this requirement is an IDIQ with a five-year ordering period of July 2026 through July 2031.

This contract will allow the NWS Upper Air Program Office to accomplish its mission of supporting 78,000 radiosonde observations per year.

4. An identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

41 U.S.C. 1901, using simplified procedures up to $9M, in accordance with Federal

Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 12.201-1.

5. A demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires using the authority cited. The contracting officer has determined the following circumstances justify the use of a sole source as supported below:

Only one source - Only one source is capable of providing the GP20 balloons required at the level of quality required because the supplies are unique or highly specialized. GP20 balloons, manufactured by Totex Corporation (Totex), are the only commercial supplies demonstrated to consistently satisfy the rigorous quality and field performance standards required by the NWS specification. An alternative or unproven balloon poses operational risks during the critical launch and ascent phases. Specifically, inferior manufacturing or non-uniform material texture can cause the balloon's neck to rip, shred, perforate, or prematurely separate from the body during inflation or immediately upon release. Such structural failures directly cause an "invalid flight," making the balloon drop, lose, or catastrophically damage the radiosonde and its accompanying flight components (including the parachute and dereeler). Furthermore, balloons that suffer from early bursting fail to reach the minimum specified burst altitude of

20.0 km. This halts data collection prematurely, directly compromising the accuracy and completeness of the meteorological observations necessary to feed into computer-based weather prediction models.

The Totex GP20 balloon has highly specialized characteristics that uniquely qualify it to meet the government's requirements:

Proprietary Material & Flight Profile Resilience: The balloon is engineered with a highly specialized compound and uniform texture that prevents the buildup of electrostatic charges during preparation and flight. The biodegradable natural material is chemically formulated to remain completely non-reactive to hydrogen, helium, or natural gas inflation variants. This specific composition allows the envelope to withstand extreme atmospheric chemistry, flight pressures as low as 3.0 hectopascals (hPa), wind speeds up to 165 m/s, and severe flight temperatures plummeting to -70°C without experiencing material degradation or elastic failure.

Aerodynamic Uniformity: The manufacturing process uniquely guarantees the consistent and optimal, near-constant average ascent rate of 5 m/s (with a minimum baseline of 275 m/min) required to prevent radiosonde sensor measurement distortions.

Due to their highly specialized material properties, precise physical dimensions, validated manufacturing history, and proven reliability under volatile weather conditions, Totex is the only source capable of meeting the agency's performance requirements. Specifically, the Totex GP20 balloon is the only model that has successfully passed NWS testing to validate compliance with performance specifications. Furthermore, the Totex GP20 track record under both past and current contracts provides sustained, real-world proof that the GP20 consistently delivers the required performance.

Totex has authorized Kaymont as the exclusive distributor for Totex’s GP20 balloons in the United States (U.S.). Kaymont has also established re-seller agreements for Totex’s GP20 balloons with other companies, allowing these companies reselling capabilities to commercial entities in small quantities (see Paragraph 8 for additional information). Kaymont has retained exclusive rights for sale to U.S. government agencies, including NWS. Kaymont has provided Totex GP20 balloons for use at NWS Upper Air sites for over fifteen years.

Kaymont is able to meet the high demand of the NWS Upper Air Program of approximately 4,680 balloons per month within a 90-day lead-time. No other source can meet the NWS’ high demand of balloons required for radiosonde launches. Maintaining an adequate supply of

4.1 of Specification No. J300-SP005, the underlying technical barriers to entry remain unchanged. Government verification has shifted to ongoing Production Testing and Lot Acceptance and empirical field performance data verification.

Technical Risk: Utilizing unproven alternatives would negatively impact the reliability and frequency of critical radiosonde measurements. Introducing an alternative product that has not successfully cleared the government's rigorous production inspection and flight evaluation protocols introduces an unacceptable probability of premature balloon bursts or structural neck failures, such as ripping, shredding, or separating from the balloon body during preparation. These physical defects directly result in failed launches and premature flight terminations. Such structural failures disrupt critical upper-air data collection schedules and immediately risk the loss or impact damage of expensive, government-furnished radiosondes and flight train components (including parachutes and dereelers).

The NWS requires a consistent supply of approximately 4,680 balloons per month to support 78,000 annual observations across 102 Upper Air sites. Kaymont possesses the unique, proven ability to meet this high-volume demand within the mandatory 90-day lead time. Initiating an open competition at this stage would result in an intolerable delay to the NWS Upper Air Program. Any such delay creates an unacceptable risk of missed atmospheric observations, directly degrading the accuracy of national weather forecasts and severe weather modeling. The current specification cannot be modified to invite broader competition without compromising the integrity of the data collected. Utilizing unproven alternatives would negatively impact the reliability and frequency of critical radiosonde measurements.

10. A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed an interest in the acquisition in writing.

A Sources Sought Notice was posted on SAM.gov on March 5, 2026 requesting that parties express their interest by submitting their answers for the questionnaire attached in the notice. In addition to the sources listed in Section 8 above, one vendor, “ ,” originally expressed interest by submitting themselves as an Interested Vendor via the SAM.gov Sources Sought Notice. However, no further communication was received from this vendor. An internet search identified that , located in , is a women-owned business specializing in merchant wholesaling for service establishment equipment and supplies. The company is a freight forwarder only and does not manufacture supplies of any kind. Another vendor, “ ,” inquired via email about whether there is a service component to this requirement. AGO confirmed that this is solely a supply contract, and responded that they will not be submitting at this time.

11. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services required.

To mitigate the current reliance on a single source and encourage future competition for GP20 balloons, the government will implement the following actions:

The NWS Upper Air Program will continue to perform rigorous market research to monitor the capabilities of the global and domestic marketplace. This includes conducting internet searches for meteorological equipment manufacturers to identify new market entrants.

The Government will continue to monitor the development of advanced data platforms, such as those from and , to determine if improvements in their navigation, repeatability, or data consistency allow them to meet the NWS mission requirements for 78,000 annual observations.

NWS will maintain an open dialogue with emergent vendors and monitor technical capabilities to ensure they can meet the mandatory 5 m/s ascent rate and 20km burst height.

The Contracting Officer will periodically verify the distribution status of Totex products. If other authorized resellers obtain the rights to sell directly to Federal government agencies, or if the exclusive distribution agreement between Totex and Kaymont is modified, the Government will pivot to a competitive procurement strategy.

The NWS will regularly review the GP20 balloon Specification to ensure that performance requirements represent the Government's minimum needs and do not unnecessarily restrict competition, provided that the accuracy of meteorological data and the protection of life and property are not compromised.

This comprehensive strategy ensures that the Government remains positioned to capitalize on shifting market dynamics and technological advancements while maintaining its critical Upper Air observation mission.