Sole Source JA Redacted.pdf

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION IN

ACCORDANCE WITH FAR 13.501(a)

1. Contracting Activity.

Marine Corps Installations National Capital Region (MCINCR) Regional Contracting Office (RCO) Quantico, VA

2. Description of Action Being Approved.

Approval is requested for a follow on contract to M00264-19-P-0193. The strategy is to award a five year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract with Firm Fixed Price (FFP) line items on a sole source basis to:

Sparta Software Corporation 165 A Constitution Dr.

Menlo Park, CA 94025

CAGE: 7M7Y4

The SpartaTrac Force Plate System will be used to provide physical assessment of Marines and officer candidates’ physical performance and identify risk factors that can decrease operational readiness. The contract will be funded at the delivery order level with Operations and Maintenance (O&M) funding applicable to the fiscal year in which orders are issued.

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

The Commandant of the Marine Corps and Commanding General Training Education Command (TECOM) are concerned about the high attrition rate of female officer candidates attending Officer Candidate School. They have directed a study and implantation of solutions to lessen the injuries to female candidates. Sparta Software Corporation’s SpartaTrac Force Platform & Performance Testing System is a jump profile force plate and proprietary software system that can accurately and objectively assess the operator’s force production, athleticism, fatigue and susceptibility to injury risk, which assists in the assessment of force longevity and readiness. The system includes the Platform/Performance Testing System, Force Plates, and software. The software consists of propriety algorithms that not only identify potential injuries, but also develop an exercise plan that can maximize the Marine’s physical abilities without causing skeleton/muscle injuries.

This J&A authorizes the use of non-competitive procedures to award a sole-source, firm-fixed price, indefinite-quantity contract to Sparta Software Corporation, for SpartaTrac Force Plate System and associated subscriptions in support of reducing the attrition rates from injuries sustained in training by female Marines at Officer Candidate School, recruits at the Recruit Depots, and evaluate potential candidates at officer recruiting stations. This contract will be for a five year ordering period. Each delivery order will specify a delivery date for items ordered under this contract. The minimum dollar value of this procurement will be $253,000 and the maximum value is not to exceed $5,000,000.

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. Section 3304 (a)(1), as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 13.501(a)(ii). 41 U.S.C. Section 3304(a)(1) states “(a) When Noncompetitive Procedures May Be Used.—An executive agency may use procedures other than competitive procedures only when—

(1) the property or services needed by the executive agency are available from only one responsible source and no other type of property or services will satisfy the needs of the executive agency;”

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority.

The Sparta Science software consists of proprietary algorithms that not only identify potential injuries, but also develops an exercise plan that can maximize the Marine’s physical abilities without causing musculoskeletal injuries. However, this software is not compatible with other types of force plates and must be used in conjunction with Sparta’s force plates. The privately developed software, along with the corporate expertise are the sole property of Sparta Science. Due to the fact that the SpartaTrac Force Plate System has been identified as the only plate system that meets the requirement, Sparta’s software must be utilized as well to ensure compatibility.

The Marine Corps is currently utilizing six SpartaTrac Force Plate Systems with corresponding subscriptions. By competing this requirement, the Government introduces the possibility of having to purchase a different brand of force plates in addition to the software/subscriptions provided by that company. This would greatly increase the cost to the Government.

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

Market research was conducted for M00264-19-P-0193 and three companies were identified that could provide the force plates. Only Sparta Science had the software that can interpret test results and design a fitness plan for the Marines.

For this requirement, a review of current marketplace conditions was conducted and no other vendors were identified that can meet the requirement.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost

The Contracting Officer has determined the anticipated cost to the Government of the supplies/services covered by this J&A will be fair and reasonable.

The fair and reasonableness of the cost/price will be determined using the following methods:

1. Review of historical prices paid that were determined fair and reasonable.

2. Review of GSA catalog pricing.

3. Review of Sparta published price lists

4. Any other methods deemed appropriate by the Contracting Officer.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition.

USMC TECOM will continue to monitor the capabilities available in the commercial marketplace. If another potential source emerges, the Marine Corps will assess whether competition for future requirements is feasible.

If another company can be identified that can provide the software to develop a fitness plan, then full and open competition will be used.

9. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition, such as:

(i) Explanation of why technical data packages, specifications, engineering descriptions, statements of work, or purchase descriptions suitable for full and open competition have not been developed or are not available.

N/A

(ii) When 6.302-1 is cited for follow-on acquisitions as described in 6.302-1(a)(2)(ii), an estimate of the cost to the Government that would be duplicated and how the estimate was derived

Use of the cited statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition applies to the proposed procurement based upon this requirement being a follow-on effort for the production of highly specialized equipment and award to any other source would result in substantial duplications of costs to the Government that are not expected to be recovered through competition.

Sparta Software Corporation is the sole manufacturer and distributor of the Sparta Trac Force Plate System. They possess the knowledge of the engineering, design and production techniques associated with the Sparta Trac Force Plate System, as well as they retain sole ownership of all technical data rights.

The Government procured the Sparta Trac Force Plate System under contract, M00264-19-P-0193, as a commercial item and did not procure the technical data package or any specific data rights. Sparta Software Corporation’s strategy has consistently been to retain ownership and rights to all technical data developed at private expense. A teleconference was conducted with Sparta Software Corporation’s Vice President, Mike Hoffman, on 7 August 2020. The Government inquired about the cost of obtaining data rights to the proprietary software for the force plate systems. Mr.Hoffman stated that Sparta was not interested in selling the data rights. Furthermore, as this was never discussed as a strategy by Sparta, he couldn’t provide an estimate as to what the cost would be to sell the data rights.

The procurement effort, covered under this justification, is for a minimum of 2,000 subscriptions and an indefinite number of force plate systems to be purchased during the 5 year odering period. A new program would be a substantial duplication of costs to the Government, as approximately 6 force plate systems have been procured and/or fielded, at a unit price of approximately $64,000, for a total price of nearly $384,000 to replace this existing inventory.

Based on the information above, use of the cited authority is in the best interest of the Government, since this is a follow-on contract for continued production of highly specialized equipment, Sparta Trac Force Plate System, in which Sparta Software Corporation owns the technical data and award to any other company would result in substantial duplication of costs, approximately $384,000, to the Government that are not expected to be recovered through competition.

(iii) When 6.302-2 is cited, data, estimated cost, or other rationale as to the extent and nature of the harm to the Government

N/A

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

N/A

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.

Market research will be conducted prior to any subsequent acquisition to confirm that no commercial equipment meeting the Government requirement is available from other vendors. This can include Sources Sought Announcements, Requests for Information and other methods to gauge industry capability.