SWATS3 Justification for Exception to Fair Opportunity Approval_Redacted.pdf

This is a Justification Review Document for an Exception to Fair Opportunity under FAR Part 16, dated May 2026.

U.S. Army Central Command (USARCENT) requests approval to award a noncompetitive, one-year Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) task order to Business Mission Edge, LLC (BME) under the ITES-3S contract (W52P1J-18-D-A100) for South-West Asia Theater Signal Support Services (SWA-TS3). The task order, valued at an undisclosed amount funded by FY 2026 Operations and Maintenance Army (OMA) funds, will support critical signal services for USARCENT's CENTCOM Area of Responsibility, including engineering and installation (E&I) support, IT services, Command and Control, Communications, Computer and Information Technology (C4 IT), network monitoring, program management, information assurance, and computer network defense. The current task order expires June 16, 2026, and this action serves as a bridge to maintain critical signal services during Operation Epic Fury while follow-on competitive evaluations are completed.

The justification cites an urgent and compelling need exception under 10 U.S.C. §3406(c)(5) and RFO FAR 6.103-2. USARCENT states that loss of signal support services would cause serious injury to mission success and personnel safety in the theater. The follow-on competitive acquisition was placed on hold due to Operation Epic Fury and is expected to resume evaluations within the month, with an anticipated award date of July 29, 2026. BME, the incumbent contractor since September 2020, is identified as the only source capable of providing uninterrupted services during the transition period due to operational continuity requirements and ongoing contingency operations in the CENTCOM AOR. The justification notes that market research identified multiple small businesses capable of providing the required services for future competitions, but BME's existing expertise and established relationships make it the only viable option for the critical transition-in period. Fair and reasonable cost determination is based on comparison to previous prices for the same work.