Spectrum Upgrade JA.pdf

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

Security Marking (select from the drop-down list)

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I. Agency and Contracting Activity.

ACC AMIC is procuring this requirement on behalf of HQ ACC/A6.

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

The proposed action is a modification to purchase order FA489020P0015. This contract was competitively awarded to deliver, install, and provide training for a Spectrum Monitoring System at Langley Air Force Base. The proposed modification will upgrade the existing system to provide 3D Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) capability for Drone and Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) detection.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs (including the estimated value).

HQ ACC/A6 requires one additional monitoring node, peripheral equipment, software, and installation/training necessary to upgrade the existing CRFS RFeye spectrum monitoring system to provide 3D TDOA capability for Drone and UAS detection at Langley Air Force Base. The estimated cost of was determined based on optional pricing submitted by CRFS in response to solicitation FA489020Q0010; however, this pricing was not evaluated as part of the award decision.

IV. Statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) The property or services needed by the agency are available from only one responsible source or only from a limited number of responsible sources and no other type of property or services will satisfy the needs of the agency.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

HQ ACC/A6 currently has the CRFS RFEye spectrum monitoring system installed at Langley AFB to actively monitor the Electromagnetic Operation Environment (EMOE). CRFS is the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of the installed RFEye system. No other vendor can provide the required nodes, peripheral equipment, and software required to integrate drone detection capabilities into the current system. Additionally, CRFS is the only known source with an approved Interim Authority To Test (IATT) that'll lead to an Air Force Authority to Operate (ATO) for spectrum monitoring system equipment and software.

VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by subpart 5.2 and, if not, which exception under

FAR 5.202 applies.

In accordance with DFARS PGI 206.302-1(d) the contracting officer posted a Request for Information (RFI) to beta.SAM.gov to identify any potential sources that may offer compatible equipment or alternative solutions. The RFI was posted from 04 Feb 21 - 19 Feb 21, and two responses were received; one from the OEM CRFS and a second from Anritsu.

CRFS's resonse confirmed they are the OEM for the RFEye system installed at Langley and that they are capable of providing the required updates.

Anritsu's response provided a capability document that indicated they can provide a spectrum monitoring system, but did not address their ability to provide the proposed upgrade to the existing system. A follow-up email was sent to request Anritsu complete the requested RFI Response Worksheet, to which no response was received. The Government understands this to mean that Anritsu is unable to upgrade the existing RFEye system.

Additionally, the Government intends to attach this justification to a pre-solicitation notice of its intent to award a sole source modification to CRFS to meet both the synopsis requirements at FAR 5.201(b) and the availability of the justification requirements at FAR 6.305(a).

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VII. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

Pricing for drone detection capability was obtained from CRFS and four other offerors in response to solicitation FA489020Q0010, and anticipates that it will be able to determine CRFS' price for this modification fair and reasonable.

VIII. Description of the market research conducted and the results, or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted.

RFI: The Government posted the RFI referenced in section VI as part of its market research.

Industry Engagement: Based on the response to Langley's Spectrum Monitoring System solicitation FA489020Q0010, the Government had expected more responses to its RFI that addressed both this upgrade action, and a future ACC Enterprise solution. When no RFI responses were received from the other offerors that had responded to FA489020Q0010 the Government reached out to two of them, to inquire whether they saw the RFI notice. The government asked if they had seen the RFI, why did they elect not to respond, and if they hadnt seen the RFI, the government requested their feedback.

One company did not respond. The other company responded that they had not seen the RFI and were interested in providing feedback. The feedback they provided indicated that they are not authorized to provide upgrades to the current CRFS TRL9 RFeye system.

Previous Market Research: Market research was conducted in August 2020 for Langley's original spectrum requirement. It was identified that multiple commercial sources are capable of providing spectrum monitoring systems; however, based on the required modifications for this upgrade action it is not anticipated that any other companies identified during the previous market research would be capable of providing the required modifications to CRFS' RFEye system.

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

N/A

X. List of any sources that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

CRFS

Anritsu

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

The Government will continue to engage with industry, via RFIs and one-on-ones, as its spectrum monitoring requirements continue to evolve. The Government remains interested in potential advances in technology that may facilitate interoperability between various spectrum monitoring systems at different locations in the future.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my (our) signature(s) above, I (we) certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my (our) responsibility, is both accurate and complete.

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