Notice of Intent to Sole Source

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) hereby submits a Notice of Intent (NOI) to inform industry contractors of the Government's intent to award a sole source, firm-fixed priced contract to Paraclete Aviation Life Support LLC, 1760 Jardco Drive in Clarksville, Tennessee 37040.

This contract action is for commercial services under NAICS code 336413 Other Aircraft Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing for which the agency intends to solicit and negotiate with only one source under FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)(i), Simplified Acquisition procedures.

The Branch conducted research on the features and capabilities of flight helmets that are certified to DOI/USFS Aviation Helmet Standard 4.3 https://www.doi.gov/aviation/safety/helmet to determine the best make/model to replace the aging helmet inventory of the Branch.

An overall objective is to enhance safety of Branch pilots and aerial observers through modernization of aviation helmets while improving comfort during long-duration surveys. Key factors were helmet design and weight, noise canceling quality, fitment options, range of DOI approved sizes, maintenance requirements, and customer support. This research lead to the selection of Paraclete Aviation Life Support https://paracletelifesupport.com and the Aspida or Carbon-D Aspida as preferred helmets for the Branch. The key factor in this selection was that Paraclete helmets offer a proprietary Kairos Retention Assembly with Dial Closure System. In contrasting fitment systems across approved vendors, we found Paraclete's proprietary Kairos Retention Assembly with Dial Closure System to be superior in supporting fine-tuning of helmet fit to a wide-range of head shapes and sizes.

The superiority of the Kairos Retention Assembly with Dial Closure System enhances comfort and safety of the user and provides the flexibility necessary to ensure consistent and adequate fit for a wide array of users. This is necessary since every year dozens of individuals from across the Service as well as other agencies and organizations participate as aerial observers in Branch surveys as part of short-term detail assignments and share the helmets within the Branch inventory. The individuals who participate also varies from year to year and survey to survey. The Paraclete Apsida and Apsida-D meet the helmet certification standards of the DOI. They are the only vendor to offer to proprietary Kairos Retention Assembly with Dial Closure System. Paraclete is the only manufacturer and distributor of these helmets in the United States.

FWS anticipates an award in February 2024 with a proposed period of performance of a base year plus four option years with an estimated total contract value of $51,000.

This announcement constitutes the only notice. This is not a request for competitive quotes. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, which must demonstrate clear and convincing evidence that competition would be advantageous to the Government and would not be cost or time prohibitive. Responses received from this solicitation will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. A determination by the agency not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the agency.

Questions or comments to this NOI should be directed to Contracting Officer, Ryna Russell at ryna_russell@fws.gov no later than 1:00pm, EST, Friday, 2/9/2024. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted. Please indicate in the subject of your email: Notice of Intent Capability Statement Submission - DOIFFBO240059.