ORAN - Optical Regional Area Network Maintenance

Added: Aug 17, 2011 2:16 pm JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL

FOR EXCEPTION TO FAIR OPPORTUNITY



1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

Office of Acquisition and Logistics

Center for Acquisition and Logistics

1701 Directors Boulevard, Suite 600

Austin, TX 78744

2. Description of the Action: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) requires network maintenance services at VA Central Office (VACO), the Capital Region Readiness Center (CRRC) in Falling Waters, WV and the VA Medical Center in Martinsburg, WV on a sole source basis. This firm-fixed price acquisition for Optical Regional Area Network (ORAN) network maintenance services will be awarded as a task order under the General Services Administration (GSA) Alliant Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) number GS00Q09BGD0056. The period of performance will be for six months and 16 days. The task order will also include an option to extend services for three months.

3. Description of Supplies or Services: The purpose of this acquisition is to continue the ORAN network maintenance services with Northrop Grumman Information Technology, Inc. (NGIT) for an additional six months and 16 days from August 16, 2011 until February 29, 2012. The contractor shall provide maintenance of a robust transmission infrastructure that is secure, redundant, and considered 'best of class' in the fiber optic transmission industry, with all aspects complying to current industry standards which will ensure successful operation of a completely diverse fiber optic ring. In addition, the network infrastructure must provide high-bandwidth, high-availability, manageability, and scalability. The contractor will maintain the connection and equipment racks at all VA locations in order to maintain the network. The contractor shall be responsible for monitoring and repairing the network to include the fiber links and equipment. The estimated cost of this six-month task order and three-month option is $962,000.00. This includes the cost of the dark-fiber cable connection, routine preventative maintenance of the ORAN network equipment, and emergency response to system outages.

4. Statutory Authority (Identification of the Exception to Fair Opportunity): The statutory authority permitting an exception to fair opportunity is Section 41 U.S.C. 253(j)(b) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 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".

5. Reason for Authority Cited: Central Office IT Support Services plans to contract with NGIT, McLean, VA for these services. Only NGIT has the specific expertise to ensure that appropriate connectivity is provided to each VA location and only NGIT understands the configuration of the network equipment required to ensure operation of the network without failure. NGIT has the necessary expertise to provide the connection and maintenance services to the Government and manage the ORAN network equipment. The Program Office researched other companies but they cannot provide the services necessary interoperability or compatibility to ensure continuous, uninterrupted operation of the network. Only NGIT has the specific knowledge of the network to meet the Government's needs.

6. Efforts to Obtain Competition: Market research was conducted, details of which are in the market research section of this document. Furthermore, in accordance with FAR 5.3 and 16.505, this action will be synopsized as soon as possible after award on the Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) page.

7. Actions to Increase Competition: In order to remove or overcome barriers to competition in future acquisitions for this requirement, the Government's technical experts will continue to perform market research to determine if there are any products available that will enable future requirements to be competed.

8. Market Research: The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code established for this requirement is 541519 - Other Computer Related Services. This U.S. industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing computer services, network system services and/or data processing support services. Establishments providing computer systems or data processing support services are included in this industry. The NAICS code was used to extract a list of Veteran-Owned Small Business contractors from the Veterans Online Business Registry (VETBIZ) database and a list of all contractors from the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database. Additionally, the Program Office spoke with the following companies August 2011: Level 3 Communications, LLC, Verizon Communications and AT&T Corporation. However, the expertise to understand the connections required and the configuration of the equipment needed to maintain the operation of the network without interruption rests only with NGIT.

9. Other Supporting Facts: None.