Sole Source Special Notice and Pre-Solicitation Notice for DOT FY 2026 Tellabs procurement.docx

Sole Source Special Notice / Pre-Solicitation Notice for a project involving contractor-work to be performed on a Tellabs-Based Passive Optical Local Area Network (LAN) Upgrade for the U. S. Department of Transportation (DOT)

This document is not a Solicitation.

This document is instead a SOLE SOURCE SPECIAL NOTICE / PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE in support of the U. S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) contemplated awarding-----to VTG, LLC-----of a Purchase Order under which VTG, LLC will perform work on a Tellabs-based Passive Optical Local Area Network (LAN) Upgrade for the U. S. Department of Transportation (DOT). ACCORDINGLY, DOT DOES NOT EXPECT TO HAVE ANY NEED TO PUBLISH ANY SOLICITATION FOR THAT PROJECT. Further details are given below.

1. IDENTIFICATION OF THE REQUIRING ACTIVITY AND CONTRACTING ACTIVITY AGENCY (REQUIRING ACTIVITY) Department of Transportation (DOT) Office of the Secretary (OST) Departmental Office of Intelligence, Security and Emergency Response (S-60)

CONTRACTING ACTIVITY

U.S. Department of Transportation/OST Acquisition Services Division, M-63 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590

2. NATURE/DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTION BEING APPROVED

The Department of Transportation’s (DOT), Office of the Secretary (OST), Departmental Office of Intelligence, Security and Emergency Response (S-60) has an existing Tellabs-based Passive Optical Local Area Network (LAN), on which upgrade-work needs to be performed by a contractor. Further details are given in the following paragraph numbered 3.

3. DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES REQUIRED TO MEET THE AGENCY’S NEED

DOT requires a critical system upgrade of its current Tellabs-based Passive Optical Local Area Network (POL). That needed contractor-work is specifically a lifecycle modernization of an active system, not a new installation. The project involves replacing 12-year-old, end-of-life (EOL) hardware while maintaining the existing fiber-optic backbone. Based on technical necessity, historical performance, and the unique constraints of the existing architecture, VTG is believed, by DOT, to be the only firm capable of performing that needed upgrade-work at the high level of quality and dependability and “know-how” indispensable to DOT, and at the low level of risk indispensable to DOT. VTG’s unique qualifications are specified below in this document’s section numbered 5.

4. STATUTORY AUTHORITY PERMITTING OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

In accordance with the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul’s (RFO’s) Part 6 (section 6.103-1), I hereby determine that the subject procurement’s contemplated Tellabs-upgrade-project is available from only one source, VTG, LLC, and that competition is precluded for the reasons indicated below. There are no substitutes available.

5. STATEMENT DEMONSTRATING THE UNIQUE QUALIFICATIONS OF THE PROPOSED CONTRACTOR OR THE NATURE OF THE ACTION REQUIRING THE USE OF THE AUTHORITY

DOT requires a critical system upgrade of its current Tellabs-based Passive Optical Local Area Network (POL). This procurement action is specifically a lifecycle modernization of an active system, not a new installation. DOT’s needed upgrade-project involves replacing 12-year-old, end-of-life (EOL) hardware while maintaining the existing fiber-optic backbone. Based on technical necessity, historical performance, and the unique constraints of the existing architecture, VTG, LLC is the only firm, known to DOT, which is capable of performing this needed upgrade-project at the high level of quality and dependability and “know-how” indispensable to DOT, and at the low level of risk indispensable to the Department. VTG’s unique qualifications are as follows:

· Twelve Years of Continuous Institutional Knowledge: VTG, LLC is the original equipment integrator that designed and installed the current system in 2014. VTG, LLC has maintained the system continuously for the last 12 years. This decade-plus of uninterrupted service has provided VTG, LLC with an exclusive understanding of the site-specific fiber pathways, signal degradations, and software configurations that no other firm can replicate without risking major faults in DOT’s existing system due, in part, to significantly elongating the procurement process.

· Unique Expertise in Legacy-to-Modern Migration: Because VTG, LLC has managed the system’s maintenance and performance since its inception, VTG, LLC is the only firm with the knowledge required to migrate legacy data structures to new hardware without data loss. A new contractor would have to reverse-engineer the 12 years of maintenance context necessary to troubleshoot the inevitable complexities of upgrading a decade-old network-----in a cost-risk that would be unacceptable to DOT.

· Infrastructure Preservation and Risk Mitigation: The existing Tellabs-specific fiber plant must remain in place to avoid the costs of a total replacement, which would likely measure in the hundreds-of-thousands of dollars. VTG, LLC’s 12-year history with this specific hardware allows VTG, LLC to guarantee a seamless, no-downtime upgrade. Any other firm attempting to interface with this infrastructure would pose an unacceptable risk of system failure.

· Exclusive Single-Source Warranty: Because VTG, LLC has maintained the equipment for its entire lifespan, VTG, LLC is the only vendor able to provide a continued warranty that bridges the gap between the existing infrastructure and the new upgrades. This continuity of care is indispensable to DOT, as it prevents the "warranty gaps" that occur when a new firm attempts to service or upgrade a system previously maintained by another entity.

· Local Proximity and Mission Readiness: VTG, LLC’s local office in St. Mary’s County, Maryland, coupled with that firm’s 12 years of cleared access and familiarity with DOT’s Piney Point facility, ensures VTG, LLC can execute this needed upgrade in a timely manner. VTG ,LLC’s proximity allows for a less-than-30-minute emergency-response-time—a level of service which VTG, LLC has consistently proven and attained over the last 12 years.

· Authorized Vendor and Proprietary Integration: The current network's logic is built on Tellabs proprietary protocols. Only Tellabs-authorized hardware can integrate with the existing software suite. VTG holds specialized, high-level authorized integrator rights with Tellabs. These rights grant VTG, LLC exclusive access to proprietary firmware and engineering support required to bridge 12-year-old legacy hardware with modern components.

The 12-year-old existing hardware is probably not far-distant from the end of its engineering life. Failure to award this upgrade-project to VTG, LLC—the firm that has successfully designed, installed, and maintained the system since 2014—would introduce unacceptable risk to DOT. The loss of VTG LLC’s 12 years of institutional knowledge during a critical upgrade would likely lead to system-wide failure, compromising DOT’s ability to execute essential functions during a national crisis.

6. A DESCRIPTION OF EFFORTS MADE TO ENSURE THAT OFFERS ARE SOLICITED FROM AS MANY POTENTIAL SOURCES AS IS PRACTICABLE, INCLUDING WHETHER A NOTICE WAS OR WILL BE PUBLICIZED AS REQUIRED BY SUBPART 5.2 AND, IF NOT, WHICH EXCEPTION UNDER 5.202 APPLIES

This Sole Source Special Notice / Pre-Solicitation Notice, as published in SAM.gov, constitutes DOT’s primary effort to identify as many fully-QUALIFIED-sources as possible.

7. THE ANTICIPATED DOLLAR VALUE OF THE PROPOSED ACQUISITION, INCLUDING OPTIONS IF APPLICABLE, AND A DETERMINATION BY THE CONTRACTING OFFICER THAT THE ANTICIPATED COST TO THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE FAIR AND REASONABLE.

The estimated total price of the subject contemplated Tellabs=upgrade project is $239,027.23. Before the subject procurement’s contemplated Tellabs-upgrade-Purchase Order is awarded, DOT’s cognizant Contracting Officer and cognizant Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) will jointly make a determination regarding the fairness and reasonableness of the project’s price. .

8. DESCRIPTION OF MARKET RESEARCH CONDUCTED AND THE RESULTS OR A STATEMENT OF REASON MARKET RESEARCH WAS NOT CONDUCTED

Although S-60 and the cognizant Contracting Officer did search the Internet, this Sole Source Special Notice / Pre-Solicitation Notice, as published in SAM.gov, constitutes DOT’s primary effort to identify as many fully-QUALIFIED-sources as possible.

9. ANY OTHER FACTS SUPPORTING THE USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

All indications so far are pointing to VTG, LLC as the only company capable of providing DOT’s needed Tellabs-upgrade-project at the high level of quality and dependability and “know-how” indispensable to the Department, and at the low level of risk indispensable to DOT.

10. A LISTING OF ANY SOURCES THAT EXPRESSED A WRITTEN INTEREST IN THE ACQUISITION

None so far—except for VTG, LLC.

11. A STATEMENT OF ANY ACTIONS THE AGENCY MAY TAKE TO REMOVE OR OVERCOME ANY BARRIERS TO COMPETITION, IF SUBSEQUENT ACQUISITIONS ARE ANTICIPATED

In support of any future procurement seeking services similar to those envisioned in the instant acquisition, it is likely that DOT would hereafter publish a Sole Source Special Notice / Pre-Solicitation Notice similar to this one.

Any entity interested in this procurement—OTHER THAN VTG, LLC—which believes that it could perform DOT’s needed Tellabs-upgrade-project, as described herein, at the high level of quality and dependability and “know-how” indispensable to DOT, and at the low level of risk indispensable to DOT, may attempt to prove those points by e-mailing a Statement of Qualifications for receipt by james.mowery@dot.gov and Carlos.Marrero@dot.gov and Leonel.Raba@dot.gov not later than 11:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time June 11th, 2025.