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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Justification and Approval For

Exception to Fair Opportunity Memo

Acquisition Plan Action ID: 36C245-26-AP-4181

Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS) 10 N. Greene Street Baltimore, MD 21201

2237#512-26-3-056-0269

Description of Action: The VA Maryland Health Care System needs to procure a new Command & Control Audio-Visual system to support their critical Emergency Management obligations. This justification supports a new sole-source procurement for the acquisition through Thundercat Technologies, integration, and installation of audiovisual, video-wall, routing, collaboration, control, and emergency operations technology for the Baltimore VA Emergency Operations Center (Room 3A-300). This purchase will also include diagram system drawings, system testing and all training support and maintenance.

This A/V system must also be integrated with the Facility Notification System for Emergency broadcast capabilities within conference room (3A-300). This system is crucial for first touch to host and interface with dignitaries, medical staff, lifesaving and life safety training and education operations.

Description of Supplies or Services: The VA seeks to procure and integrate a comprehensive, mission-critical audiovisual and command-and-control system upgrade for the Baltimore VA EOC. The work includes design, installation, programming, commissioning, and sustainment of:

A 19 x 5.5 dvLED video wall

Three 86" displays

Haivision Alpha Core processing and routing architecture

Crestron-based control systems

Integrated audio systems (BiAmp Tesira)

VTC infrastructure, KVM systems, workstations, tuners, and associated equipment

Equipment racks, lecterns, and supporting components

These requirements are fully defined in the Statement of Work Baltimore VA EOC.pdf, including detailed technical specifications, room configurations, media

routing dependencies, audio system requirements, and integration constraints. The procurement estimate is $466,798.71. The projected POP will be 1 August 2026 Through 31 Dec 2026.

Statutory Authority: The statutory authority permitting an exception to fair opportunity is Section 41 U.S.C. 4106(c) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 16.505(b)(2)(i):

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(A): The agency need for the supplies or services is so urgent that providing a fair opportunity would result in unacceptable delays.

( X ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(B): Only one awardee is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services ordered are unique or highly specialized.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(C): The order must be issued on a sole-source basis in the interest of economy and efficiency because it is a logical follow-on to an order already issued under the contract, provided that all awardees were given a fair opportunity to be considered for the original order.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(D): It is necessary to place an order to satisfy a minimum guarantee.

( ) FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(E): For orders exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, a statute expressly authorizes or requires that the purchase be made from a specified source . The statutory authority permitting an exception to fair opportunity for this action is 38 U.S.C. 8127(c), known as the Veterans First Contracting Program which provides the authority to directly contract with a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) or a Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB).

Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above:

Thundercat Technology can also meet the following system requirements:

Demonstrate the capability to provide Command and Control system that will conform and align with technology standards established by the VA Cyber Security Operations Centers (CSOC) located in Martinsburg, WV, Hines, IL, and Austin, TX.

Provide proof that their proposed system meets and integrates with the standards and operational practices used by the EOCs/ICCs in Tampa and Orlando (and the Electronic Health Records Management System (EHRMS) Command Center at VACO).

Supplied Command and Control A/V system must contain an architecture that allows for the real time collaboration of the Common Operating Picture from EOC/ICC space to other locations within the medical centers or to other hospitals with in the VISN and/or across the country (including VACO IOC as needed) using the Haivision Network Site-Sharing package.

Vendor must be able to provide Seamless integration with facility-wide emergency notification and messaging systems, including BrightSign-based workflows already deployed in other VA environments

Using them exclusivity, ensures that the VA Maryland Health Care System receives the exact same proprietary soft/hardware programming and updates and support directly from the vendor. Using Thundercat Technologies prevents substantial duplicate costing as another vendor would be required to completely start over to research, program, and re-implement the highly Specialized infrastructure.

Efforts to Obtain Competition: A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable.

Review of Prior Market Research and Historical Purchasing Data Program personnel evaluated historical VA procurements of similar audiovisual, command-and-control, and EOC technology systems. Review of internal documentation, including prior sole source justifications located in Atch 1 Open Market Sole Source Justification, demonstrated that only highly specialized integrators with Haivision, Crestron, BiAmp, and dvLED engineering credentials have successfully delivered comparable systems at VA sites.

Consultation With Technical Experts and Contracting Personnel

Internal coordination with technical experts and Contracting Office staff (referenced in communications such as the email from FW: ThunderCat Technology's MRR to VA Baltimore for EOC/ICC and Technology Modernization Project) confirmed that no additional SDVOSB vendors had expressed capability or interest in performing a project of this complexity or scale. Engineering and program personnel reviewed ThunderCat s unique OEM partner ecosystem, prior VA EOC installations, and system architecture dependencies documented in the SOW.

Assessment of Potential SDVOSB Alternatives

The VA evaluated whether other SDVOSB firms possessed:

Required Haivision Alpha Core processor expertise

Crestron Certified Programmer capabilities

Proven past performance integrating multi-vendor routing, A/V, KVM, VTC, and audio DSP systems

Prior VA emergency operations center deployment experience

No alternative SDVOSB source met these combined technical thresholds.

Conclusion

All reasonable efforts were made to solicit interest and assess potential competition. Market research, historical data, internal SME review, and prior justification materials confirm that only ThunderCat Technology can meet the Baltimore VA EOC s specialized technical, operational, and compatibility requirements. Efforts to broaden future competition are documented in Atch 1 Open Market Sole Source Justification.docx, which notes VA s commitment to reviewing OEM ecosystems, market capabilities, and opportunities for competitive follow-on acquisitions.

Actions to Increase Competition: Describe actions taken, or that will be taken, to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before initiating any subsequent acquisitions for the supplies, or services required, including challenges to restrictive data markings, data rights, preparation of a performance-based work statement, and etc.

The VA will continue to:

Review evolving OEM partner ecosystems

Evaluate potential open competition for future lifecycle refreshes

Reassess market capabilities at each procurement stage

This sole-source is limited strictly to the minimum required to meet urgent operational needs.

Market Research: Provide a description of the market research conducted among the contract holders and the results. If market research was not conducted, the reasons it was not conducted should be stated. When citing FAR 16.505(b)(2(i)(b) or FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(e), the only possible way to state in paragraph 5 of the J&A that there is only one contractor who can fulfill the agency s needs is to conduct market research, and it should be summarized here.

Market research conducted included:

Review of VA past performance databases

Technical evaluation of OEM-required integration partners

Assessment of SDVOSB-eligible firms capable of Haivision-Crestron-BiAmp multi-vendor integration

Review of available SOW and equipment specifications provided by ThunderCat and prior VA deployments. No other SDVOSB or vendor demonstrated the required capabilities, certifications, OEM partnerships, or VA-specific integration background9. Other Facts: Pricing will be evaluated using:

Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE)

Comparison with prior VA installations of similar scope

Verification of OEM equipment pricing

Evaluation of labor categories and market rates

ThunderCat must provide detailed cost breakdowns consistent with FAR 15.404.

10. Contracting Officer's Certification (required): I certify that the foregoing justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

ALISON KLEIN

Digitally signed by ALISON KLEIN Date: 2026.07.28 19:23:14 -04'00'

Alison Klein Date

Contracting Officer NCO 5 Awarded contract NNG15SD26B to THUNDERCAT TECHNOLOGY, LLC for 446708.71000000 on 2026-07-30.