SSP 26_019 PROPOSED SSP.pdf
PDF 394 KB Posted
- Attached to
- 9280-26-R-RFQI-00005
- Solicitation number
- 3140004520
- Issued by
- Jasper County, Mississippi
About this file
This is a Notice of Proposed Sole Source Purchase (SSP 26_019) issued by the University of Southern Mississippi for the procurement of Innovasea Transponders and Receivers compatible with the most recent technology updates for tracking fish populations. The procurement supports research funded by state and federal sponsors to monitor fish populations in Mississippi's waters and beyond, conducted through Michael Andres' lab in the Division of Coastal Sciences and the Center for Research and Development. The notice was scheduled for advertisement on March 15, 2026, and March 22, 2026. Objections to the sole source designation must be submitted in writing by April 2, 2026, at 2:00 PM CST to Millissa Weaver at 703 E. Beach Dr, Ocean Springs, MS 39564, with the subject line "Sole Source Objection 26_019." Any submitted objection must include detailed explanation and supporting documentation demonstrating that alternative sources can provide the required commodity.
USM justifies the sole source procurement on the basis that Innovasea is the only vendor offering technology that is both backward and forward compatible with USM's existing infrastructure and that of collaborators across the Gulf region, ensuring continuous tracking capability as study organisms move between systems. The university notes that while competitors offer similar technology, none provide equivalent data precision, cloud-based storage capabilities, or customer service quality. USM has contacted alternative vendors and confirmed their incompatibility with current systems. Pricing is deemed reasonable, with the company maintaining stable prices over more than a decade of purchases and providing additional value through workshops and training at professional meetings. If objections are sustained, USM will withdraw the sole source request and initiate a competitive bidding process or refer the matter to the Public Procurement Review Board.
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Other files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| DEPARTMENT JUSTIFICATION LETTER.pdf | ||
| USM SSP 26_019 ADVERTISEMENT.pdf | ||
| VENDOR JUSTIFICATION LETTER.pdf |
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Text version
The University of Southern Mississippi
Notice of Proposed Sole Source Purchase
SSP 26_019
RFX 3140004520
The University of Southern Mississippi anticipates purchasing the item(s) listed below as a sole source purchase. Anyone objecting to this purchase shall follow the procedures outlined below.
1. Description of the commodity that USM is seeking to procure:
• Innovasea Transponders and Receivers compatible with the most recent updates to track fishes.
2. Explanation of why the commodity is the only one that meets the needs of the agency:
• USM (in particular Michael Andres’ lab in the Division of Coastal Sciences and the Center for research and Development) have been funded by state and federal sponsors to track and monitor fish populations in Mississippi’s waters and beyond. This technology ensures that we are able to detect presence/absence of telemetered species in our waters as well as those from collaborators outside of our system. Other companies do sell technology similar to InnovaSea’s but none of their competitors sell technology that is both backward and forward compatible with the investment in technology currently made. Furthermore, no other competitor has come close to the quality or data precision that we have seen.
3. Explanation of why the source is the only source is the only person or entity that can provide the required commodity:
• InnovaSea is the premier company in passive acoustic telemetry devices for tracking of aquatic organisms. Their reputation for customer service and product quality has positioned them as the top producer of such equipment. All of USM’s current infrastructure for tracking fishes using passive acoustic technology as well as our collaborators across the Gulf use their technology, meaning that when our study organisms move into different systems we are able to track those movements (and vice versa) to ensure that we are addressing the concerns of the state and federal sponsors of out telemetry projects.
Notice of Proposed Sole Source Purchase
SSP 26_019
4. Explanation of why the amount to be expended for the commodity is reasonable:
• The prices are reasonable as the company has not meaningfully raised their prices in the more than a decade that we have been purchasing equipment from them.
They have also been forward thinking with the advances in their technology and have hosted many workshops training students and staff in the use of their equipment at professional meetings. Their customer service is prompt and cloud-based storage options ensure that data is maintained and secure.
5. Efforts that the agency went through to obtain the best possible price for the commodity:
• We have contacted other competitors to see if their transmitters and receivers are compatible with the most recent updates as well as to determine if they have similar capabilities in cloud storage as to what InnovaSea currently offers… none of them do.
Advertisement Schedule Date
1st scheduled 03/15/2026
2nd scheduled 03/22/2026
Any person or entity that objects and proposes that the commodity listed is not sole source and can be provided by another person or entity shall submit a written notice by April 2, 2026, 2:00 PM CST, to:
Notice of Proposed Sole Source Purchase
SSP 26_019
Millissa Weaver 703 E. Beach Dr
Ocean Springs, MS 39564
Subject Line must read "Sole Source Objection 26_019"
The notice shall contain a detailed explanation of why the commodity is not a sole source procurement. Appropriate documentation shall also be submitted if applicable.
If after a review of the submitted notice and documents, USM determines that the commodity in the proposed sole source request can be provided by another person or entity, then USM will withdraw the sole source request publication from the procurement portal website and submit the procurement of the commodity to an advertised competitive bid or selection process.
If USM determines after review that there is only one (1) source for the required commodity, then
USM will appeal to the Public Procurement Review Board. USM will have the burden of proving that the commodity is only provided by one (1) source.
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