SSJ AFNORTH SSC Large Bridge Amended CA Signed RED_Redacted.pdf

Sole Source (Including Brand Name) Justification - Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items

CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION

March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 2 of 5March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 2 of 5

I. Contracting Activity.

Department of the Air Force, Air Combat Command (ACC), 325th Contracting Squadron, 220 Checkertail Way, Tyndall

AFB, FL 32403

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

A. This Sole Source Justification (SSJ) authorizes the use of other than full and open competition procedures to obtain an extension to the original 2-month bridge contract for AFNORTH Support Services at Tyndall AFB, FL, Rome, NY, and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA with SysCom, Inc, the incumbent contractor currently providing these mission essential services under contract FA481925C0007, to ensure continuous AFNORTH Support Services until the protest stay of the recently awarded competitive 8(a) follow-on contract is lifted. This amended SSJ will include an extension to previously executed SSJ resulting in contract FA481925C0007.

B. The prior contract for AFNORTH Support Services, FA481924C0007, was awarded on 28 February 2024 and included a 9 month base with three, one-month option periods which were later converted to a 12 month basic contract. The acquisition was issued as a direct award under the Small Business Administration's 8(a) Small Business Development Program to SysCom, Inc. The contract total period of performance was 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025 including all options while a long-term, follow-on contract could be solicited under solicitation number FA481924R0009. On 6 February 2025, a competitive award was issued to CT3I with a scheduled start date of 1 March 2025. On 18 February 2025, a post award protest was filed by SysCom leading to a stay in performance for while the protest was adjudicated.

C. As the Government began planning for a contingency award during the adjudication of the protest, a direct award 8(a) to the incumbent, SysCom, Inc was pursued leading to the issuance of an Offering Letter to the Colorado District Office of the SBA to seek approval to utilize the direct award statute for a short term contract. In the course of seeking the Acceptance Letter, the SBA office notified the Contracting Officer that as a result of a review of SysCom revenues, the firm was no longer considered small and was ineligible for an award under the 8(a) program as of the date of receipt of proposals on 15 November 2024 and subsequently would not be issuing an acceptance letter as requested.

D. As a result of the previously approved SSJ, a bridge contract was awarded as a firm-fixed price definitive contract for a total value of $ . The base period of performance for the bridge contract included one, 2-month base period. The period of performance established on this bridge action was from 1 March 2025 through 30 April 2025.

The bridge contract was necessary to ensure no lapse in mission essential services occurs, provide for adequate time to fully adjudicate the protest concerns and allow for an adequate transition/phase-in period for the awardee upon the lift of the stop work stay of the awardee.

E. Due to the ongoing nature of the protest, it has been determined that an extension to the previously approved SSJ is necessary to ensure uninterrupted service while the protest is fully adjudicated. The proposed extension will result in an estimated increase in the amount of $ consisting of a one-month extension for CLINs 0001, 0002, 0003, and 0004 for a total of $ extending the period of performance to 31 May 2025, and the inclusion of two (2), one-month options as CLINs 1001, 1002, 1003, and 1004 for a period of performance of 1 Jun to 30 Jun 2025, and CLINs 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 for a period of performance of 1 Jul to 31 Jul 2025 at a total value of $ to serve as off-ramps as necessary for transition to the long-term, follow-on contract following protest adjudication. FAR 52.217-9 Option To Extend the Term of the Contract will be incorporated to the contract bi-laterally in conjunction with the incorporation of the aforementioned options. Currently, the protest is anticipated to completed by on or before 29 May 2025, this extension will serve as a means to provide a successful transition for the apparent awardee for successful, uninterrupted services in support of the AFNORTH mission.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs.

A. The contractor shall provide all management and labor necessary to support Continental United States NORAD Region (CONR), First Air Force (1 AF) Air Forces Northern (AFNORTH) Tyndall AFB, FL and its associated units at Eastern Air Defense Sector (EADS), Rome, NY; and Western Air Defense Sector (WADS) at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) AFB, WA. All work performed by the contractor shall be performed in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations, Headquarters Air Force (HAF) standards, instructions, and

Sole Source (Including Brand Name) Justification - Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items

March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 3 of 5March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 3 of 5 commercial practices. Services will be administrative support for each location as stated in the Performance Work Statement. Each service is essential to keep the Air Force fully mission capable in each location. This service will provide engineer support, training services, information technology services, Facility Support, and security operations support. Contractors will be expected to be cleared for security clearance IAW FAR Subpart

4.4 with the submission of a DD254 to the security office at Tyndall AFB. Several of these positions will have access to SAP and secure locations at their respective location.

B. The original period of performance is 1 March 2025 to 30 April 2025. The estimated period of performance of this extension is 1 May 2025 to 31 May 2025 with two, one-month options covering a period of performance of 1 Jun 2025 to 30 Jun 2025 and 1 Jul 2025 to 31 Jul 2025 respectively. The proposed extension will result in an estimated increase in the amount of $

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

DAFFARS 5313.501 - 10 U.S.C. 3572, Implementation of Simplified Acquisition Procedures (41 U.S.C. 1901)

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

A. SysCom, Inc is currently performing AFNORTH Support services under the currently performing two-month bridge contract (FA481925C0007) and was the incumbent under prior contracts which include successive twelve-month bridge contracts (FA481923C0007, FA481924C0005) and the prior long-term contract (FA481917C5001). Currently, SysCom, Inc. employs all personnel in place at Tyndall AFB, FL, along with the AFNORTH geographically separated units at EADS located at Rome, NY and WADS located at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA as necessary to provide uninterrupted fulfillment of the ongoing AFNorth Support Services requirements in accordance with the Performance Work Statement (PWS). In light of the protest and the requisite stay of contract performance to the long-term follow-on, SysCom, Inc. is the only source that can provide the required services without unacceptable delays, disruption of services, and substantial duplication of costs while the protest is adjudicated and the stay of performance is lifted permitting the new awardee to continue transition. As a result of the timing of the protest and subsequent denial of the the acceptance letter from the SBA citing eligibility as outlined in section II C. above, in lieu of a sole source award to SysCom, Inc., securing a competitive bridge procurement with appropriate transition and phase-in requirements, and the additional costs that would be incurred by the Government, only SysCom, Inc can meet the ongoing agency requirement to maintain uninterrupted services.

B. It was not feasible for the Government to solicit competitive proposals for the required bridge contract prior to the 28 February 2025 expiration of the previously provided AFNORTH Support Services performing under bridge contract FA481924C0005. The AFNORTH Support Services are of significant magnitude and complexity with several labor categories requiring active security clearances for mission essential personnel, and as such, it would take a minimum of 6 to 9 months to solicit a competitive source selection for a bridge contract of what resulted in the previous two-month bridge contract.

C. If the previously issued two-month bridge contract had been awarded to any contractor other than the incumbent, the new contractor would require a transition/phase-in period with a potential learning curve of approximately 45 to 60 days to assume full responsibility of contract performance to successfully perform the requirements of the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

D. The AFNORTH Support Services requirement maintains several labor categories which are identified as mission essential including Operations Planning, Facility Management, Domestic Operations Desk Specialists, Engineering, Air Defense Sector Operations, and Maintenance Information Technology Support to name a few. A break in service of any length would have a significant adverse mission impact to the Continental United States NORAD Region (CONR), First Air Force (1AF), Air Forces Northern (AFNORTH) and Air Forces Space (AFSPACE) critical missions. Therefore, it was vital that an issuance of the two-month bridge contract was executed to avoid adverse mission impact from work stoppages prior to the conclusion of the previous bridge contract which ended 28 February 2025. An award to any other source would result in unacceptable delays in fulfilling the AFNORTH Support Services requirement as well as give the

Sole Source (Including Brand Name) Justification - Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items

March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 4 of 5March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 4 of 5 appearance of attempting to circumvent the stay mandated under the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) resulting from the filed protest on 18 February 2025. Duplication in costs would not be recoverable through competition by the Government.

VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable.

Competition among viable 8(a) contractors is evidenced by the ( ) proposals which responded to the solicitation for the competitive action. Based on the realized interest in the solicitation and ultimately award of the competitive contract, it is evident that there is adequate competition and capabilities amongst small businesses within the SBA 8(a) program to perform this requirement; however, the incumbent contractor, SysCom, Inc., is the only source that can provide the required services without significant interruption to the AFNORTH mission and a degradation to national security.

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

Pursuant to FAR 15.404-1(b)(2), various price analysis techniques and procedures will be used to ensure a fair and reasonable price. Such techniques include, but are not limited to: Comparison of the proposed prices to historical prices paid, whether by the Government or other than the Government, for the same or similar items, use of parametric estimating methods/application of rough yardsticks, and comparison of proposed prices with the Independent Government Estimate (IGE).

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

Based on the aforementioned findings, it is evident that there is adequate competition and capabilities among small businesses within the 8(a) Program to perform this requirement; however, the incumbent contractor, SysCom, Inc is the only source that can provide the required services without significant and immediate degradation to the AFNORTH mission or substantial duplication of costs to the Government until the stay for protest of the follow-on 8(a) competitively awarded contract is lifted.

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.

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)

(6) I (7)

(8) SysCom, Inc.

(9) (10)

(11) .

While the contractors listed above demonstrated their interest and potential capability by submitting a proposal against the competitive solicitation for the AFNORTH Support Services requirement, SysCom is the only source that can provide the required services without significant and immediate degradation to the AFNORTH mission and is recommended to be a sole source bridge contract to avoid any lapse in service or significant duplication of costs until the protest stay of the follow-on competitive 8(a) contract is lifted. The order of the contractors listed above shall be in

Sole Source (Including Brand Name) Justification - Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items

March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 5 of 5March 2023 CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION Page 5 of 5 no way construed as the order or ranking of the proposals received as a result of solicitation FA481924R0009.

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.

A competed follow-on 5-year AFNORTH Support Services contract has been awarded as contract FA481925C0004 of 6 February 2025; however, as a result of the post award protest, a stay of performance has been issued as of 19 February 2025 while the protest is fully adjudicated. Upon the protest being adjudicated, the actions necessary to return to a competed 5-year follow-on requirement will take place with full contractual responsibility in accordance with the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

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.