3. FSS Sole Source Justification_HCBC Modernization EffortMS+AF+EA.pdf Redacted.pdf

FEDERAL SUPPLY SCHEDULE SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION

FOR AN ORDER EXCEEDING

THE SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION THRESHOLD

(AUTHORITY: GSAM/R 538.7104-3)

REQUIREMENTS-26-1617

This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Program.

1. Agency and contracting activity. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO), Corporate Services Acquisition Division (CSAD).

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

This is a sole source justification for a new order against GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract No. 47QTCA24D00E4. NOAA intends to award a new order to ANG Signal.

Via market research communications with the Contracting Officer, ANG Signal confirmed that this contemplated order is within scope of 47QTCA24D00E4.

A Firm Fixed Price (FFP) order is contemplated for award.

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

The requirement is to provide continuous Tier 1-3 support for the legacy DOC Network Operations Center (NOC) environment, Datacenter Operations, and Cable Plant service and to provide specialized network integration and implementation services to accelerate the modernization and integration of the DOC NOC into the existing N-Wave network architecture. This requires complex network implementation, configuration, and validation. The total estimated cost is $8,226,672.00 for a period not to exceed two years. The contemplated total period of performance is not to exceed 8/18/2026 through 8/17/2028. This will allow the N-Wave Program Office to accomplish its mission of urgently mitigating critical network operational risk due to End-of-Life (EoL) equipment.

4. Authority and supporting rationale. The following circumstance justifies a sole source as supported below:

Only One Source Capable under the authority of GSAM/R 538.7104-3(b)(1)(ii) – Only one source is capable of providing the products, services, or solution required at the level of quality required because the products, services, or solutions are unique or highly specialized.

ANG Signal is the only responsible source capable of performing this specialized follow-on integration without incurring substantial duplication of cost and unacceptable delays. See the following bullets for more details.

● Unique Knowledge: This requirement is to migrate DOC network operations into N- WAVE. To that end, the SOW consists of two tasks: (1) Provide continuous Tier 1-3

Robyn.Jones Highlight

Robyn.Jones Oval support for the legacy DOC NOC environment, Datacenter Operations, and Cable Plant services; and (2) Plan, engineer, physically install, configure, test, and migrate the in-scope equipment to integrate the new N-Wave equipment in a manner that directly matches N-Wave service offerings.

These tasks are inextricably linked. The intent of this contemplated modernization contract is to create an infrastructure that shifts from the legacy DOC environment (that is currently separate from N-Wave) and create a N-Wave centric NOC that can support both NOAA and DOC. The long-term intent is to combine DOC Tier 1-3 operations and NOAA Tier 1-3 operations and incorporate them into this new NOC.

However, in order to successfully transition from DOC legacy operations to NOAA/N-Wave, the legacy contractor support as outlined in Task 1 is needed to ensure that the new NOC is built in such a way that ensures all required DOC stipulations stay intact. Moreover, experience with DOC legacy operations is critical to meet mission needs and to ensure a seamless transition to the long-term solution.

ANG Signal is the only vendor currently capable of performing the work contemplated under this effort because they have the highly specialized knowledge needed to create a modern NOC that supports both NOAA and DOC Tier 1-3 operations. In order to successfully transition over everything, NOAA needs a contractor that is fully capable of fully performing all tasks in the SOW and is capable of planning and executing the migration of all existing services from the current to the new N-Wave centric NOC in a manner that supports mission execution.

ANG Signal is the incumbent for N-Wave Tier 3 operations and maintenance services. They exclusively performed the DOC network assessment, giving them expert knowledge of the legacy architecture, EoL risks, and the exact modernization methodology required for integration into N-Wave standards. ANG Signal’s incumbent experience in N-Wave Tier 3 operations and maintenance makes them able to do Tiers 1 and 2. Since Tier 3 expertise requires a comprehensive mastery of the underlying architecture and root-cause logic, it inherently encompasses the foundational troubleshooting skills and system knowledge required to execute the more standardized, surface-level tasks of Tiers 1 and 2.

While there are other contractors, including current DOC contractors, who can perform general network operations and maintenance, only ANG Signal has the ability to seamlessly perform all tasks within the SOW, which is a critical need for the Government.

Therefore, no other company sufficiently understands all SOW requirements to be able to perform work immediately and with little to no Government intervention.

● Performance Risk: The use of any other contractor would cause a significant performance risk at a time where the mission requires seamless execution. The mission cannot afford delays resulting from a vendor who does not fully understand the intricacies of this project and the requirement overall. This time would be spent learning N-Wave procedures, system architectures, and re-performing the baseline assessment work already completed by the incumbent.

● Critical Mission Risk: The DOC network equipment is EoL and not under warranty.

Delaying modernization introduces a significant risk of catastrophic equipment failure, leading to extended outages and costly, complex temporary measures.

5. Determination that the order represents the best value consistent with FAR 8.401, GSAM/R 538.7102-2(b)(4).

Prior to award, a price analysis will be performed and documented to ensure that the rates proposed for this contemplated order are consistent with the FSS contract pricing that has been determined fair and reasonable. In addition, the Contracting Officer will request additional discounts/price reductions before award consistent with GSAM/R 538.7102-2(c)(2).

6. Market research conducted among schedule holders (or reason market research was not conducted).

The Contracting Officer and the Program Office searched SAM.gov, reviewed mandatory use vehicles in FAR Part 8, and interviewed knowledgeable subject matter experts. Market research has identified that ANG Signal is the only responsible source capable of performing this specialized follow-on integration without incurring unacceptable delays. It has been determined that ANG Signal has a Federal Supply Schedule that can support this work. This was accomplished by sending a draft of the Statement of Work to ANG Signal and receiving a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) with labor categories that are cross-walked back to their Federal Supply Schedule contract No. 47QTCA24D00E4. Therefore, the Contracting Officer intends to solicit under FAR Part 8 - Required Sources of Supplies and Services. Overall, market research has revealed that the time required for any other vendor to acquire the necessary unique knowledge would be unacceptable to the Government.

7. Technical/Requirements Representative Certification.

I certify that this requirement constitutes the Government’s minimum needs and the supporting data provided herein is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Matthew Smith Date Contracting Officer’s Representative

8. Office of General Counsel Review.

Review

Andrew Parker Frank Date Office of General Counsel

9. Contracting Officer’s Certification and Approval.

I certify that the circumstances of the acquisition deems only one source reasonably capable of providing the products, services, or solutions.

Elizabeth Abraham Date Contracting Officer

10. Approval for Justifications >$900k.

NOAA Competition Advocate:

Approve

Binita Sharma Date NOAA Competition Advocate

SMITH.MATTHEW.WHYMOND

R.1455358600

Digitally signed by SMITH.MATTHEW.WHYMOND R.1455358600 Date: 2026.04.09 10:19:43 -06'00'

ANDREW FRANK

Digitally signed by ANDREW

FRANK

Date: 2026.04.09 12:56:12 -04'00'

ABRAHAM.ELIZABETH.DENISE.12755

74291

Digitally signed by

ABRAHAM.ELIZABETH.DENISE.1275574291

Date: 2026.04.09 13:15:07 -04'00'

SHARMA.BINITA.138

0799193

Digitally signed by

SHARMA.BINITA.1380799193

Date: 2026.04.15 15:43:21 -04'00'