Service and Maintenance- Linear Accelerators - 578

Added: Mar 08, 2016 2:20 pm DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS



Justification and Approval (J&A)

For

Other Than Full and Open Competition (>$150K)



Acquisition Plan Action ID: VA69D-15-AP-5143



1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs, NCO12, Great Lakes Acquisition Center, Suite 101, Milwaukee, WI 53214-1476. Transaction 695-16-2-133-0033, Maintenance of the linear accelerator equipment.



2. Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Processed: This procurement is for maintenance and repair of the linear accelerator equipment located at the Edward Hines VA Hospital in accordance with FAR 13.5 Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items. This is a new requirement for a firm-fixed price contract.





3. Description of Supplies/Services Required to Meet the Agency's Needs: Provide full service maintenance and preventive maintenance to include inspections, calibrations and repairs on the linear accelerator equipment. Contract employees must be factory-trained service technicians. The total estimated cost of the contract is $ 384,078.00.





4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other than Full and Open Competition:

.

(X ) (1) Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy

Agency Requirements per FAR 6.302-1;





5. Demonstration that the Contractor's Unique Qualifications or Nature of the Acquisition Requires the Use of the Authority Cited Above (applicability of authority): Varian's electronic documentation is proprietary and protected to include several service tools available to the customer. No other 3rd party vendors have access. All regular firmware updates for system components are provided from Varian and other vendors are not authorized access. Varian does not provide access to training and certification for the linear accelerators.





6. Description of Efforts Made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as deemed practicable: Market research was conducted to check for potential vendors capable of providing service. A sources sought notice (VA69D-15-Q-0884) was posted to FBO on 5/1-15 - 5/11/15, requesting interested vendors capable of repairing, calibrating, cleaning, oiling, adjusting, providing hardware and software updates, upgrades and replacing parts; provide a capabilities statement. A search was conducted on the Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) site and an intent to sole source notice (W91YU0-15-P-0307) was located that was posted by the Department of the Army. The award was made using other than competitive procedures. Searches on Vetbiz did not produce possible vendors. The SBA revealed one profile, Rymsa Micro Communications, Inc., however the vendor's capabilities included industry manufacturing and research and development and not service for the linear accelerator equipment.







7. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable: The anticipated quoted price reflects a 10% discount from list price for parts purchased and a 3% discount for coverage for multiple equipment at the same location. Pricing will also be compared to current catalog and historical pricing.



8. Description of the Market Research Conducted and the Results, or a Statement of the Reasons Market Research Was Not Conducted: As described in Section 6 above, market research, in accordance with FAR Part 10, was conducted by synopsis of the proposed acquisition, advising industry of the pending acquisition and soliciting inquiries from interested parties. A sources sought notice (VA69D-15-Q-0884) was posted to FBO from 5/1/15 - 5/11/15 however, no responses were received. Additional searches on FBO revealed a posted sole source notice from the Department of the Army (W91YUO-15-P-0307) for service on Varian linear accelerators. A search was conducted on the Small Business Administration site, (SBA) under criteria "linear accelerators", NAICS 811219 and found one other vendor besides Varian Medical Systems. The profile for Rymsa Micro Communications, Inc. indicated that the vendor's capabilities included industry manufacturing and research and development, but not service for linear accelerators. The search of Vetbiz and GSA under search criteria "linear accelerators, NAICS code 811219" did not reveal any profiles.







9. Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other than Full and Open Competition: Vendors must have a Memorandum of Understanding, Interconnection Security Agreement, and (MOU/ISA). These agreements are issued to the manufacturer of the equipment (when an active contract exists) by the Information Security Office (ISO) when new equipment is received by the Department of Veterans Affairs. This allows applications support to the users for real time service and repair which would not be provided by another vendor. Proprietary software prevents other contractors from obtaining a MOU/ISA agreement with another manufacturer's equipment, required for monitoring the equipment by internet. Furthermore, in order to obtain a MOU/ISA, the vendor must have an active contract. The average processing time for the agreement is approximately eight months which would prevent other vendors from providing the needed remote services.



10. Listing of Sources that Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition: The only vendor that expressed interest was Varian Medical Systems. No other responses were received from the sources sought notice posted on FBO from 5/1/15 - 5/11/15.





11. A Statement of the Actions, if any, the Agency May Take to Remove or overcome any Barriers to Competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required: Approval for sole source procurement is requested for one year with no option years. No actions are planned to compete in the immediate future. Proprietary software and real time connection prevent other vendors from accessing the linear accelerators to repair and maintain. This equipment is used to treat cancer patients and therefore, it is imperative that the equipment is maintained and in working order or repaired with minimal down-time. At this time, the only action that could overcome barriers in competition is purchasing other high tech medical equipment from another manufacturer. This type of high tech specialized medical equipment would not be cost effective to the Department of Veterans Affairs or taxpayers to purchase new equipment each time to promote competition. Given the critical need of cancer treatment for veteran patients, it is crucial that this equipment is maintained and serviced by the manufacture until such time as new equipment becomes more cost effective and efficient for the patients. However, information currently received from the National Acquisition Center (NAC), may promote other procurement options. The Contracting Officers are in talks with Varian to enter into a nationwide service agreement in support of the linear accelerator equipment. Varian currently has a NAC contract for the sale of the linear accelerators, but not for service of that equipment. A rising demand from the VHA has prompted the NAC to revisit the requirements.