Sole Source Justification LRS.pdf

United States Department of Agriculture Limited Sources Justification

For an Order/BPA Exceeding Micro-Purchase Threshold & up to the Simplified Acquisition Threshold

FAR 8.405 Federal Supply Schedules Multiple Award Schedule Program

1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity.

Agency: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), Digital Infrastructure Services Division (DISC).

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Departmental Administration, Office of Contracting and Procurement, Procurement Operations Division, 301 S. Howes Street, Suite 321, Fort Collins, CO 80521.

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

The USDA intends to issue a delivery order on a firm fixed price order to be posted on a sole source basis with Levi, Ray and Shoup, (LRS) Inc. An order will be issued against LRS’s General Services Administration (GSA) Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) contract number GS-25F-0468J under category MAS. This requirement is for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), Digital Infrastructure Services Center (DISC).

The USDA, OCIO, DISC requires authority to renew the software maintenance and technical support of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) LRS software maintenance for VPS Suite. LRS is the proprietary owner of the software maintenance.

The period of performance and estimated value is: 10/1/23 - 9/30/24

3. The authority and supporting rationale.

The following circumstance justifies limiting the source under FAR 8.405-6:

FAR 8.405-6(b) - Item(s) peculiar to one manufacturer, including brand name.

4. A statement demonstrating the unique qualifications of the proposed contractor or the nature of the action requiring the use of the authority. (Delete the statements that don’t apply.)

This brand name justification is to document why one manufacture, LRS, is peculiar for this software renewal.

DICS currently utilizes LRS COTS software products for operations in numerous environments. LRS is the manufacture/owner/developer of these propriety software products and ongoing software maintenance and technical support. LRS provides maintenance and technical support services for active licenses.

This requirement to use LRS product is based on the requirements of DICS’s mainframe customers over the past twenty years. The DICS do not have any other products currently installed that do a similar function. The DICS uses LRS products to satisfy the need for all our customers to receive mainframe reports via IP to their local printers.

• DRS - This product is used to send reports to a VTAM defined device and make it look like an IP device, which uses the VPS IP device to print the report.

• VPS/Report Browse - This product allows the reports to be browsed through VMCF while connected to the mainframe.

• VPS/TCPIP This product allows reports to be sent IP to remote printers.

• VMCF/VTAM This product provides the information and controls for the VPS product.

• VTAM Printer Support - This is the main product that runs on the mainframe to allow remote printing.

• VPSPrint: is a TSO command processor that can be used to create a SYSOUT dataset on the JES spool from any non-VSAM dataset. VPSPrint reads the specified input dataset and writes records to the SYSOUT dataset according to parameters specified on the VPSPrint command. The resulting SYSOUT dataset can be printed by VPS, JES, or any product which retrieves datasets from the JES spool.

• LRS/MVS Server: Component, introduced with VPS R7.0 and licensed as a component of VPS, is used to obtain the information required to format the VMCF and DMCF displays. VMCF and DMCF clients may request the following types of information or actions from the LRS/MVS Server.

The DICS requires this software maintenance and technical support of these products for the on-going support in order to support the DICS’s mission of providing information technology (IT) services to its customer agencies.

It is necessary to renew the software in order to operate with immediate access to technical support if required.

Renewing the LRS software will provide that access.

Market research was conducted to ascertain whether any products, other than those from LRS, could meet the Government’s requirements. The market research entailed reviewing products such as OM Plus Print Spooler Management and ROC Easy Spooler. Print Spooler Management and Easy Spooler did not match DICS mainframe infrastructure. VPS Suite software integrates into DICS current printing systems, such as Ringdale Follow Me, HP printers and print VPS jobs from the Mainframe. It also allows DICS to expand to other networkable copiers if desired. Therefore, Print Spooler Management and Easy Spooler could not meet Government’s requirements.

5. A description of the market research conducted among schedule holders and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted.

Historically VPS software and support has been obtained directly from Levi Ray and Shoup against LRS’ GSA Schedule contract 47QTCA19D00CG. There are no known authorized resellers. An email was sent to LRS to inquire if there were any authorized resellers who could provide their software. Confirmation was received that there are no authorized resellers that could provide this software and they were the sole providers.

6. Recommended source(s).

No other sources have been identified, but DISC technical staff continually monitor new and existing technology to ensure that optimal solutions are identified.

Certifications & Approval

Supporting data which form the basis for and included in this justification are certified accurate and complete.

Digitally signed by DANIAL MC CORD Date: 2024.09.03 12:20:45 -05'00'

Dan McCord Technical Personnel

The information contained in this Limited Sources Justification is certified accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Digitally signed by BRANDEE KESLAR Date: 2024.09.04 10:01:36 -06'00'

Brandee Keslar Contracting Officer

DANIAL MC CORD

BRANDEE KESLAR