SOLICITATION NOTICE
D -- Network Engineering, Business and Operations Support Services - (NEBOSS) Follow-on Sole Source to General Dynamics Information Technolo
- Notice Date
- 3/31/2010
- Notice Type
- Justification and Approval (J&A)
- NAICS
- 517110
— Wired Telecommunications Carriers
- Contracting Office
- Center for Acquisition Innovation;IT&T Service;1615 Woodward Street;Austin TX 78772
- ZIP Code
- 78772
- Archive Date
- 4/28/2010
- Point of Contact
- Mark ShumakeContracting Officer
- E-Mail Address
-
Contracting officer
(mark.shumake@va.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Award Number
- GS00T03AHD0016 V0010A101S07106
- Award Date
- 3/29/2010
- Description
- JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVALFOR EXCEPTION TO FAIR OPPORTUNITY FAR 16.505(b)(2)(iii) Upon the basis of the following justification, I hereby approve the issuance of the contractual action described below using other than full and open competition, pursuant to the authority cited herein. 1. Contracting ActivityRequiring Activity Department of Veterans AffairsDepartment of Veterans Affairs Center for Acq. Innovation-Austin VA Network and Security Center 1615 Woodward Street882 T J Jackson Drive Austin, TX 78772Falling Waters, WV 25419 2. Nature of Action Being Approved: This justification and approval sets forth the facts and requests approval for the issuance of a follow-on contract task order in accordance with FAR 16.505(b)(2)(iii). The proposed cost is estimated to be $10,854,433.20 for General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) to continue performance of critical congressionally mandated telecommunications modernization engineering and network services. The period of performance begins 30 March 2010 and continues for a base period of six months with up to two (2) three-month options, and a possible transition period not to exceed 90 days thereafter. 3. Description of Service and Supplies: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has been mandated to support the national telecommunications network while following approved Enterprise Architecture (EA) design and functionality. As a result the Enterprise Wide Area Network (WAN) project was established to engineer and implement a national enterprise network for VA. Critical to the success of this effort is maintaining the continuity of knowledge-based contractor support for the operation of the network. The Enterprise WAN is responsible for establishing the new telecommunications infrastructure while: Reducing security risks; Ensuring against impacts to patient care and loss of veteran benefit information as data traverses the network; Establishing business standard network monitoring and budgeting tools; Continually assessing application deployments for impacts on capacity management. The scope and purpose of the follow on contract is to provide knowledge-based services, which include conducting telecommunications network engineering operations, providing capacity planning, and providing implementation support. These activities include performance of the following tasks: Provide state of the art Network and Security Engineering for the VA. Design, deploy and operate the VAs internal network infrastructure based on fault tolerant MPLS clouds for the 300k seat network. Secure the network and the Internet Gateway infrastructure. Operate redundant 7/24 NSOC centers that oversee the internal infrastructure. Operates the 7/24 service desk for the approximately 25K users of the remote access solutions. Server Management Network Management Services IT Security Operations Services Storage Area Network Services Continuity of Operations Telecommunications Services Design and Implementation Services Enterprise Engineering and Implementation Government Managed Services Support Infrastructure Application Support Common Enterprise Infrastructure Customer Remote Access Desktop Management Services IT Security Administration Services Asset Management 4. Statutory Authority: This acquisition will be conducted under the authority of 41 USC 253j, and FAR 16.505(b)(2)(iii); logical follow-on exception to fair opportunity. The basis for logical follow-on is economy, efficiency and logical follow-on to an order already issued under fair opportunity. The task order will be placed to maintain the engineering and operational integrity of, or to augment an established telecommunications capability within an organization. 5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above: GDIT was selected for the previous task order using a competitive process under GSAs Government-wide Connections contract. This is not a Federal Supply Schedule (FSS). GDIT was the only company to submit a proposal under the fair opportunity procedure. Additional time is needed to more carefully plan the approach for a five-year follow-on contract, and to consider use of a different contract vehicle if necessary, to promote and improve competition. The following factors: complexity and cost of this interim requirement; the time needed for industry to respond, and; time for the VA to properly evaluate proposals, prevent us from competing this interim contract, without causing a break in service. A break would quickly and severely degrade VA operations across the enterprise. The authority applies because this action ensures the operational integrity of established telecommunications capabilities in VA. A new, competitive five-year contract for Network Engineering and Operations Support Services is currently in the pre-solicitation planning process. This action will provide adequate lead time to ensure competitive procedures can be used for the five-year follow-on contract. The initial intent was to award the five-year follow-on contract in time to avoid a break in service. However, recent reorganization efforts and associated delays in obtaining reviews and approvals restricted timely submission of an actionable procurement, and it will not be possible to competitively award a five-year contract before expiration of the final six-month extension provision on the current order. The current orders extension provision permits performance to continue only through 29 Mar 2010. This order will be issued in accordance with the fair opportunity provisions of both FAR 16.505 and the GSA Connections contract. 6. Efforts to Solicit Potential Sources: A new procurement package is being developed that will ensure the performance work statement is not restrictive and promotes competition. Full and Open Competition will be sought for the new contract. A Request for Information (RFI) notice is planned for the follow-on effort. There are no other actions that currently can be taken to make the immediate action available for competition without suffering a break in service. 7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable. The cost of this interim acquisition will be fair and reasonable. Actions anticipated to ensure reasonableness of the price will be accomplished by using the pricing procedure detailed in the GSA Connections contract, Section A: Solicitation/Contract Form, paragraph B.1.1. Pricing of Orders, the price tables within it, and by using the policies and methods set forth in FAR Subparts 15.4 and 16.505(b). We intend to issue a firm-fixed-price document, except for approximately 8% of the award value, which will be used for Ad-Hoc gateway support; the nature and timing of these tasks will require pricing on a labor-hour basis (see accompanying Determination and Findings for Use of Labor Hour Contract in the contract file). The cost estimate is based on use of existing GSA Connections contract prices, and by applying previously negotiated price discount assumptions. 8. Other Supporting Data: N/A 9. Other Interested Sources: None currently identified, but market research efforts are expected to identify multiple sources capable for the follow-on effort to this action. 10. Future Competitive Plans: Plans are underway to develop a solicitation for a full and open competitive contract to replace this interim contract. This contract will provide for a transitional period (Continuity of Service clause) of up to ninety (90) days to ensure a smooth change-over, if the incumbent contractor is replaced. VA is requesting this sole source contract for six months plus two three-month options which will afford the necessary time to issue and award a competitive solicitation for a consolidated engineering support contract. GDITs performance has been excellent in meeting or exceeding all previous and current requirements. 11.Future barriers to competition: None.
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