A.03.09_W9127N-16-R-0053_JA_Unusual_and_Compelling.pdf

JUSTIFICATION REVIEW DOCUMENT FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

CONTROL NO. NWP-16-019

PROJECT/EQUIPMENT: Cougar Intake Tower Repair, Lane County, Oregon

AUTHORITY: FAR 6.302-2 AMOUNT: $550,000

Prepared By:

NAME (Type or Print) Ryan S. Shoemaker

TELEPHONE NO

503-808-4628

TITLE

Contract Specialist

DATE

2/9/2016

Contracting Officer

Same as 13 & 14 in J&A

(5)

Tracy L. Wickham

TELEPHONE NO

503-808-4600

TITLE

Contracting Officer

Technical

(6)

Brent C. Welton

TELEPHONE NO

503-808-4873

TITLE

Mechanical Engineer / Technical Lead

Requirements

(6)

Gail L. Saldana

TELEPHONE NO

503-808-4781

TITLE

Project Manager

DATE

SIGNATURES ARE REQUIRED BELOW:

justification adequate to support other than full and open competition

Deputy for Small Business (7)

SIGNATURE DATE

NAME (Type or Print) Carol A. McIntyre

TELEPHONE NO

503-808-4602

Project Manager* (8)

If no PM, use N/A

SIGNATURE

SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.123163781 Digitally signed by SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.1231637814

DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, 4 cn=SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.1231637814 Date: 2016.02.10 09:29:35 -08'00'

DATE

NAME (Type or Print) Gail L. Saldana

503-808-4781

Office of Counsel

SIGNATURE

AINSWORTH.ANDREW.EDWARD. Digitally signed by AINSWORTH.ANDREW.EDWARD.1468810138

DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, 1468810138 cn=AINSWORTH.ANDREW.EDWARD.1468810138 Date: 2016.02.10 11:50:14 -08'00'

DATE

NAME (Type or Print) Andrew E. Ainsworth

503-808-4523

District Chief of Contracting

SIGNATURE

WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.114121879 Digitally signed by WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790

DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, 0 cn=WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 Date: 2016.02.11 07:45:31 -08'00'

DATE

NAME (Type or Print) Tracy L. Wickham

503-808-4600

Special Advocate for

Competition U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

SIGNATURE DATE

NAME (Type or Print) TELEPHONE NO

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL (J&A)

FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

Control #16-019

1. CONTRACTING AGENCY:

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Portland District, Construction Branch (CECT-NWP- C), 333 SW First Ave, Portland Oregon, 97208.

2. DESCRIPTION OF ACTION:

Approval is requested for a new firm fixed-price (FFP) construction contract. The type of funds to be used are shared fifty percent (50%) between the Portland District’s Emergency Operation funds and Bonneville Power Authority (BPA) funds.

3. DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES OR NATURE OF CONSTRUCTION:

A FFP construction contract is required to disconnect, secure, and move the Portable Floating Fish Collector (PFFC), remove debris from around and within the intake tower, and secure and reinstall internal trashracks within the intake tower at Cougar Dam, Linn & Marion Counties, Oregon. The estimated total value of the action is $550,000. The contract will not utilize options.

All work must be completed by April 1, 2016.

4. AUTHORITY CITED:

10 U.S.C. § 2304(c)(2) and 41 U.S.C. § 3304(a)(2), as implemented by FAR 6.302-2, Unusual and Compelling Urgency.

5. REASON FOR AUTHORITY CITED

a. Background:

In early May 2015, Willamette Valley Project (WVP) Operation and Maintenance staff took the Cougar Powerhouse turbine generator units out of service for annual maintenance. While performing maintenance, staff noticed that a significant amount of debris had accumulated in the units’ scroll cases and had become wedged between the turbine blades. Staff sent a small submersible remote operating vehicle (ROV) into the penstock intake and inspected as much as possible, including the bulkhead slot, the chamber floor, the downstream face of the bypass gate, the bypass gate slot, the forebay in front of the bypass gate, and the interior of the penstock intake chamber. The ROV revealed small diameter debris in the penstock intake chamber. Staff had plans to inspect the back side of the internal trash racks, but the water velocities began to increase as the ROV rose up to the top of the penstock intake chamber near the location of the trashracks because the regulating outlets (RO) were still in operation. Because the ROV operator was concerned about the ability of the ROV to operate in these velocities, staff was unable to inspect the intake tower’s internal trashracks. At this point, WVP staff suspected that the debris had entered the units via a slot that became exposed when the penstock bypass gate was opened. This bypass gate is normally not operated but had been recently.

Without a means of removing debris already in the penstock intake chamber, the Hydroelectric Design Center (HDC) developed a plan to operate the units at 40% gate opening to minimize debris entering units. In addition, since the bypass gate was thought to be the source of the debris incursions, WVP staff put measure in place to restrict the use of the bypass gate until design solutions could be found and implemented to prevent debris from being able to circumvent the bypass gate.

As the units operated at 40% from June to December 2015, debris continued to enter the units and eventually caused the bearing temperature to rise to the point that the units had to be shut down to prevent damage to the units. While the units were shutdown, WVP staff removed a significant amount of debris from the scroll cases and determined that there must have been another path for debris to enter the units other than the bypass gate. On January 15, 2016, staff sent down a larger submersible ROV into the penstock wet well for further investigation. The larger ROV was able to access the back of the intake tower’s internal trashracks and revealed that three grating panels on the bottom of the vertical trashrack had failed and lay on the floor of the RO intake chamber.

The approximate open area in the trashrack is 30 ft2, allowing unrestricted access for debris to get into the penstock and the powerhouse units.

HDC and WVP staff determined that the Cougar units cannot be operated without the trashracks in place because, in addition to the potential for the debris to damage the turbines, there is a significant risk that the debris will prevent the closure of the units’ wicket gates and butterfly valves, which would result in a hazardous runaway condition in the turbine generator units.

USACE, Portland District determined that the trashracks must be repaired immediately to meet mission requirements. With the units out of operation, Cougar Powerhouse is not able to generate any electricity, and all outflow from Cougar Reservoir must pass through the RO, which could compromise flood control operations. District staff determined that the trashracks must be repaired in the dry; due to the depth, access constraints, and the large amount of debris in the area, staff concluded that repairing the trashracks while submerged posed a significant and unacceptable risk to the health and safety of divers completing repairs underwater.

To complete the repairs, the PFFC must first be moved from its current location adjacent to the intake tower, and the reservoir pool must then be drawn down to expose and allow access to the trashracks. However, the District must start refilling the reservoir pool no later than April 1, 2016 to meet its operational obligations under the 2008 Willamette Valley Project Biological Opinion (BiOp), to which the District must adhere to mitigate the negative impacts of the Project’s operations on Endangered Species Act (ESA)-listed spring Chinook salmon and bull trout.

Therefore, any repairs must be completed by April 1, otherwise the trashracks cannot be repaired and the units brought back online until next fall or winter when the reservoir can be drawn down again. Consequently, for the reasons discussed below, the District has determined that it is necessary to award a contract for the immediate performance of this work to Advanced American Construction (AAC).

b. Justification:

USACE, Portland District has determined that the use of other than full and open competition to contract for the work described above is justified because an unusual and compelling urgency precludes full and open competition and delay in award of a contract would result in serious injury to the Government. Specifically, the District has concluded that an unusual and compelling urgency exists because the repairs to the trashracks must be completed before April 1 when the District must begin refilling Cougar Reservoir. Moreover, the District has determined that contracting for this work through full and open competition would delay the completion of the work until after April 1. That delay would result in serious injury to the Government because it would prevent the District from meeting its obligations under the BiOp, which could result in violations of the Endangered Species Act. Alternatively, if the District awarded a contract through full and open competition to perform the repairs when the reservoir could be lowered again next fall or winter, the Government would suffer serious injury from that delay because the District would not be able to operate the units during that time, which would lead to significant financial losses and potentially compromise flood control operations. Consequently, the District has determined that the use of other than full and open competition to complete the repairs is justified under FAR 6.302-2, Unusual and Compelling Urgency.

This unusual and compelling urgency arose on January 15, 2016. On that date, the District discovered the source of the debris that was present in the Cougar units when the ROV revealed that three 2 foot by 5 foot trashrack grating panels had fallen off the trashrack, allowing unrestricted access for debris to enter the penstock and the units. Had the District been able to diagnose the source of the debris in the units sooner, the District would have had sufficient time to contract for these repairs using full and open competition. However, the District was unable to locate the source until January 15 and now does not have sufficient time to contract for these repairs using full and open competition and still have the work completed by April 1 when the District needs to begin refilling the reservoir to meet the its obligations under the BiOp.

As mentioned above, the District must lower the reservoir to a minimal elevation of 1470 to enable the repairs to the trashrack. The pool is at its lowest elevation at the present time. The District normally begins refilling the reservoir each year on February 1. After discovering the source of the debris in the units, the District conducted ResSim modeling to determine the potential impacts of various delays to the refilling of the reservoir to allow time for the repairs.

Based on this modeling, the District determined that a two month delay, to April 1, was the maximum delay that could be experienced that would still allow the pool to refill sufficiently to meet the District’s operational obligations under the BiOp. Although modeling shows that Cougar Reservoir will likely not refill to full pool if refilling does not begin until April 1, the reservoir should be able to refill to a sufficient level to operate the temperature control tower and to implement downstream water temperature management and flows, as required under the BiOp.

There is a high risk that the District will not meet its water temperature control metric under the BiOp if refilling is delayed past April 1.

The District has identified an aggressive schedule for contract award and performance necessary for the repairs to be complete by April 1 and the reservoir to be refilled by May 1. This schedule demonstrates that there is insufficient time to award the contract for the repairs through full and open competition using standard contracting procedures and still meet those deadlines.

Milestone Date

Contract Award 2/22/2016 Submittal Approval for Mobilization 2/22/2016 to 2/31/2016 (10 days) Contractor Mobilize to the Site 3/1/2016 Contractor Begin Onsite Work 3/1/2016 Reservoir Drawdown Start at Elevation 1524 (Note: Reservoir can only be drawn down a maximum of 3 feet per day)

3/1/2016

Move the PFFC (Prior to reaching Elevation 1515)

3/4/2016 to 3/9/2016

Reservoir Drawdown from Elevation 1524 to 1515 (Note: PFFC has to be out of the area to avoid grounding and damage)

3/9/2016

Reservoir Drawdown from Elevation 1515 to

3/24/2016

Repair Trashracks 3/25/2016 to 4/1/2016 Debris Removal (Note: Can occur concurrently with other tasks)

3/1/2016 to 3/31/2016

Reservoir Refill Begins 4/1/2016 Reservoir Elevation 1524(+) 5/1/2016

If the District were to delay refilling the reservoir to allow time to award the contract for the repairs through full and open competition, the Government would suffer serious injury because the District’s operations of Cougar Dam would likely violate the ESA. In that scenario, the District would be unable to refill the reservoir to a level sufficient to operate the temperature control tower and to implement downstream water temperature management and flows. The District is required to implement these measure as part of the reasonable and prudent alternative identified by the National Marine Fisheries Service in the BiOp to avoid jeopardizing the continued existence of ESA-listed Chinook salmon and bull trout and to avoid destroying or adversely modifying their critical habitat. Temperature control is crucial for adequate migration, spawning, incubation, and rearing of spring Chinook salmon. If the District fails to implement these measures, its Willamette Valley Project operations are likely to violate the ESA, which could expose the District to costly litigation or an enforcement action.

Alternatively, if the District delayed the repairs until the reservoir could be lowered again next fall or winter to allow for full and open competition, the Government would suffer serious injury because the District would not be able to generate power during that lengthy delay and would be potentially compromising its flood control operations. The District is unable to generate power when the units are out of service. The Government is estimated to lose $4.3 million in revenue if the District is unable to generate power at Cougar Powerhouse for a year. Cougar Powerhouse would also be unable to generate station service power during the entirety of the unit outage. The Dam would have to rely solely on external powerlines for power, including to operate emergency gates for flood protection during storm events, during which time power outages are common in the region. In addition, with the units out of service, the District can only regulate outflow from Cougar Reservoir through the RO. If, under high RO outflows, an additional grating panel on the upper portion of the vertical trash rack fails, there is the potential risk that the flow may be able to sweep a trash rack grating segment through the RO conduit. It is possible that the RO gates and RO conduit would be damaged as a result. Also, when all outflow passes through the RO, the total dissolved gas in the outflow has been reported at elevated levels that cause significant mortality to the sac-fry stage of incubating spring Chinook salmon. For the reasons discussed above, the District has determined that the use of other than full and open competition to contract for the repairs is justified under the circumstances.

In addition, the District has also determined that a sole source award to AAC to complete the repairs is justified because AAC is the only firm with the recent past experience with the PFFC necessary to complete the work adequately and safely within the short period of performance demanded by this unusual and compelling urgency.

AAC is the only contractor that has recently worked on the PFFC and mobilized to the area.

Thus, it alone has the existing technical expertise needed to move the PFFC safely within the short period of performance; other firms without this experience would require considerable time to become familiar with the unique constraints associated with the PFFC before they could safely move it. The PFFC is an expensive (valued in excess of $8 million), specialized 65 foot by 60 foot floating structure presently located adjacent to the intake tower at Cougar Dam in the location that must be drained of water to expose the trashracks. However, the PFFC cannot rest on any surface without causing extreme damage to the facility because fragile fish screens extend into the water from the underbelly of the PFFC. If the PFFC is not moved prior to drawing down the reservoir, it will come to rest on a shelf of concrete and be damaged. Thus, the contractor must move the PFFC prior to the reservoir drawdown to complete the repairs to the trashracks.

The PFFC has a large electrical cable weighing 10.5 pounds per lineal foot that must be disconnected from the intake tower prior to being moved. The PFFC also has an elaborate, complicated anchoring system to keep it suspended in the water column as the pool fluctuates. If the PFFC is not anchored correctly after it is moved, it will become damaged as the reservoir level fluctuates. AAC is the only firm with recent experience with these unique constraints, making it the only firm capable of moving the PFFC without undue risk to the facility and completing the repairs to the trashracks prior to April 1.

In addition, because AAC recently worked on the PFFC, they have a recently-approved work plan, activity hazard analysis, boat restricted zone plan, crane lifting and placement plan, and safety plan, all of which must be submitted to and approved by the District prior to mobilization for the repair work. While other contractors would have to develop, submit, and obtain approval of these plans for the first time, AAC would only have to make minor additions to their previously-approved submittals for this repair work. This advantage minimizes the turn-around time for submittal and approval, which is otherwise normally around 30 days, and will allow for AAC to mobilize within the time parameters, 10 calendar days, that have been established to complete the repairs by April 1. Because any other contractor would have to undertake an extensive review of the PFFC as-builts, site conditions, reservoir fluctuations, crane access, and more to develop these plans prior to mobilization, only AAC has time to update these submittals, receive approval, and mobilize to the site within the 10 days provided in the schedule.

Accordingly, the District has determined that AAC is the only firm capable of safely and adequately performing this contract prior to April 1.

c. Impact:

As discussed above, if the award of a contract is delayed to permit full and open competition, the District would either fail to meet its obligations under the BiOp and potentially violate the ESA or, alternatively, the District would not be able to generate power until next fall or winter, leading to significant financial losses and potentially compromising its flood control operations.

6. EFFORTS TO OBTAIN COMPETITION:

For the reasons discussed in paragraph 5, above, the District determined that it was not practicable to solicit offers for this contract from more than one firm, AAC.

7. ACTIONS TO INCREASE COMPETITION:

The District intends to contract for future work of this nature through full and open competition using standard contracting procedures.

8. MARKET RESEARCH:

For the reasons discussed in paragraph 5, above, the District determined that only one firm, AAC, is qualified to perform this work by April 1.

9. INTERESTED SOURCES:

To date, no other sources have written to express an interest. Pursuant to FAR 5.202(a)(2), the District has not submitted the notice required by FAR 5.201 because this contract is made under the conditions described in FAR 6.302-2 and the Government would be seriously injured if the agency complies with the time periods specified in FAR 5.203 for the reasons discussed in paragraph 5, above. The District will make this justification and approval publically available within 30 days after contract award as required by FAR 6.305(b).

10. OTHER FACTS:

See paragraph 5, above.

11. TECHNICAL CERTIFICATION:

I certify that the supporting data under my cognizance which are included in the justification are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

NAME: Brent C. Welton TITLE: Technical Lead

CAC SIGNATURE: WELTON.BRENT.C.136

7741151

Digitally signed by WELTON.BRENT.C.1367741151 DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, cn=WELTON.BRENT.C.1367741151 Date: 2016.02.09 15:20:21 -08'00'

12. REQUIREMENTS CERTIFICATION:

I certify that the supporting data under my cognizance which are included in the justification are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

NAME: Gail L. Saldana TITLE: Project Manager

13. FAIR AND REASONABLE COST DETERMINATION:

I hereby determine that the anticipated cost or price to the Government for this contract action will be fair and reasonable based on comparison of the proposed prices to historical prices paid for the same or similar items and comparison of the proposed prices with the Independent Government Estimate in accordance with FAR 15.404-1(b)(2)(ii) and (v). Certified Cost or Pricing Data will not be required because the anticipated cost or price for this contract action is not expected to exceed the threshold for obtaining certified cost or pricing data.

CAC SIGNATURE: SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.1

231637814

Digitally signed by SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.1231637814 DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, cn=SALDANA.GAIL.LYNN.1231637814 Date: 2016.02.10 09:30:23 -08'00'

NAME: Tracy L. Wickham TITLE: Contracting Officer

14. CONTRACTING OFFICER CERTIFICATION:

I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

APPROVAL

Based on the foregoing justification, I hereby approve the procurement of the Cougar Intake Tower Repairs on an other than full and open competition basis pursuant to the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(2), subject to availability of funds, and provided that the services and property herein described have otherwise been authorized for acquisition,.

CAC SIGNATURE: WICKHAM.TRACY.LYN

N.1141218790 Digitally signed by WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, cn=WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 Date: 2016.02.11 07:48:14 -08'00'

CAC SIGNATURE: WICKHAM.TRACY.LYN

N.1141218790

Digitally signed by WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, cn=WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 Date: 2016.02.11 07:47:33 -08'00'

CAC SIGNATURE: WICKHAM.TRACY.LYN

N.1141218790

Digitally signed by WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government, ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA, cn=WICKHAM.TRACY.LYNN.1141218790 Date: 2016.02.11 07:47:07 -08'00'