Notice of Intent to Sole Source: Maximum Value (Ceiling) Increase of Contract 1332KP-23-D-NAAA0003, Geostationary Ground Sustainment Services (GGSS)

The Government hereby announces it’s notice of intent to award a sole-source contract modification increasing the maximum potential (ceiling) value of Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract 1332KP-23-D-NAAA0003 Geostationary Ground Sustainment Services.  This IDIQ contract was awarded to L3Harris Technologies, Inc. of Palm Bay, Florida under full and open competition on May 11, 2023.  The ordering period for this IDIQ is May 11, 2023 through May 10, 2028.

This modification will increase the maximum value from $275,169,157 by $270,727,196 to a revised maximum value of $545,896,353 under statutory authority of 10 USC 2304(c) (1), as set forth in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302­1(a)(2)(ii)(B), only one source is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services are unique or highly specialized and involve the continuing sustainment of a major system and award to any other source would result in unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agency's requirements.

The core requirement of the GGSS contract is sustainment of the GEO GS. Sustainment is conducted to extend the life of the GS and improve its capabilities, reliability and robustness, leverage technology advancements, and reduce life-cycle costs. The GEO GS requires uninterrupted sustainment support in order to ensure stability and safety in satellite operations and critical data operations.

The GEO GS is a custom, one-of-a kind system composed of:

• Three (3) million lines of custom software code,

• 440 commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) software packages,

• 700 physical computer servers 1,500 virtual servers,

• 500 unique hardware components o Hundreds of network and storage components (totaling

   6.7 Petabytes)

• 450 workstations

• 6 custom built 16.4m antennas operating in three frequency bands

All of these system components are interdependent and work together to form an enterprise capability. Each component (software or hardware) has dependencies on one (or more) other components within the system such that no component is a simple plug and play replacement. For example, there are 131 Cisco Catalyst network devices deployed in various places throughout the system. Changing out these devices requires a multi-step process:

1. Analysis of all the interconnects across each unit to determine the required capabilities

2. Evaluation of potential vendors for replacement units

3. Selection of a replacement units that will meet the specific need but also not have unintended

    consequences to other components

4. Factory testing of selected units in the expected operational configuration to ensure the analysis was

    accurate and that the replacement units are safe to bring into operations

5. Generation of a detailed plan to ensure an orderly deployment can be performed without impacting

    the ongoing operations of the ground system

1. The interdependencies of each unit on other components within the broader system is a

critical factor in this planning activity

6. Execution of the deployment plan

7. Disposition of replaced components

The incumbent is the only contractor who currently can provide GEO Ground System sustainment support given the unique and highly skilled nature of the effort. At this time, there are no other contractors who are capable of providing these services without incurring an unacceptable delay to on­going operations.

THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. However, interested parties (to include small and small disadvantaged businesses) may identify their interest and technical capability, and submit information for consideration by the agency.  Responses must be supported with clear and convincing evidence to clearly be able to provide the services outlined in this notice. The applicable NAICS code is 541512 for Computer System Design Services with a corresponding size standard of $27.5M. The determination to continue with this proposed sole source contract action is solely within the discretion of the Government. The Government will not be responsible for any costs incurred by responding to this notice.

Responses must be submitted in writing to the Contracting Officer, Gerald Robertson, via email at gerald.robertson@noaa.gov, and the Contract Specialist Tamalia Adams at Tamalia.adams@noaa.gov,  no later than 5pm Eastern Standard Time on the response date listed above. Telephone responses and requests will not be received.