LIMITED SOURCE JUSTIFICATION
PART I - TECHNICAL SUPPORTING DATA
Recommend negotiations be conducted with Hill International on a noncompetitive basis for a task order award off the General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) in an amount estimated at $124,506.74. The supporting data for this recommendation are as follows:
A.Description of Services
The Volpe Center requires professional engineering services to provide monitoring and technical assistance program (MTAP) support to the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA's) Northwest Region. The Northwest Region consists of the following states: Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho and Alaska. These professional engineering services support the Volpe Center in its support to FRA in the administration and oversight of the grants awarded to the states under various discretionary grant programs, including High Speed Rail, Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER), and Amtrak.
These services require a range of specialized engineering personnel to cover the following components: compliance; programmatic performance; and financial monitoring.
The compliance component measures how well grantees are following the terms of the grant or loan agreement and applicable rules, regulations, or statutes.
The programmatic performance assesses the substantive portions of projects such as the scope, schedule, and budget that are described in the agreement's statement of work as well as applicable regulations and program requirements. This component also includes a review of targeted technical matters such as engineering, environmental, and financial analysis and identifies opportunities where technical assistance can be offered to grantees.
The financial monitoring examines the potential for fraud, waste, and abuse by reviewing a grantee's accounting and financial policies and procedures, previous audit findings, and drawdown activity.
B.Background
The previous Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) contracts for monitoring and support professional services were awarded by Volpe Center on 11/19/2013 utilizing Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 15 competitive procedures under solicitation number DTRT5713R20012. These were open market multiple award task order-type contracts and have a combined total value of $75 million. Hill was one of the ten companies awarded a prime contract, Contract Number DTRT5714D30007. Following the awards of the ten master contracts under Monitoring and Technical Assistance Contracts (MTAC), the Volpe Center issued ten Task Order Request for Proposals (TORFPs) for monitoring and technical assistance support; one for each of the seven regions of the FRA, two for the corridor projects, and one for nationwide vehicle support. All ten MTAC contractors were given a fair opportunity to be considered for each of the ten regional and project task orders. The ordering period for the current open market ID/IQ contract number DTRT5714D30007 for MTAP professional services ended on 11/17/2018. The existing task order for the Northwest Region originally ended on 11/30/2018 and utilized FAR Clause 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services to extend the period of performance until 5/31/2019. There are no other options for the Government to compete task orders under the ID/IQ.
FRA is actively working on the new competitive procurement and the new five year competitive vehicle will be in place on or before 8/28/2019. Volpe Center is providing an interim solution to ensure critical professional engineering services do not lapse effective 06/01/2019 through 10/28/2019. The 10/28/2019 projected end date includes the transition period from the current vendors to the new awarded vendors, inclusive of time for background checks to be completed for the new awardee(s). The Volpe Center is pursuing this noncompetitive award for a five month period to ensure critical professional engineering services, which would result in unacceptable delays to multiple high profile grant projects. This is an interim professional services task order effective 06/01/2019 - 10/29/2019 to account for additional time required to compete and award the nationwide GSA Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA).
C.Market Research
Hill International is the incumbent under the MTAC contract for the Northwest Region and has all of the current required professional engineering labor categories available under GSA Contract Number GS-23F-0035P. The interim five month period needs to be awarded to the incumbent to save the Government cost and time, as well as to avoid a break in continuity of critical services, while the new competitive five year vehicle is being solicited and awarded. The next five year procurement has been issued competitively as a FAR Part 8 GSA BPA. The FRA is actively working on a competitive GSA BPA award for the next five year period and it will be awarded on or before 08/28/2019. It is in the best interest of the Government to utilize FAR Part 8.405-6(a)(1)(i)(B) for this short term period of performance, while the FRA is actively competing the next five year contract on GSA MAS.
D.Circumstances Requiring the Use of Other Than Full and Open (F&O) Competition.
The Volpe Center is submitting this justification for a non-competitive task order to Hill International to maintain continuity of required professional engineering support services as the FRA pursues a competitive solicitation to support the continuing and future work requirements for the next five year contract vehicle. Hill International has the current knowledge and capabilities to continue professional engineering services support for the monitoring and technical assistance support to ensure there is no loss of the Grantees' program momentum in the Northwest Region. Hill International has the technical knowledge and experience required for all required engineering labor categories to continue monitoring and technical assistance without disrupting the Grantee and project performance under the current grants. Hill International has the required staffing and management approach required to provide support to the Northwest Region available under their GSA contract. Hill International is in a position to maintain continuity of vital professional engineering services during the period between the exhaustion of the period of performance under the current task order and the next award under fair opportunity estimated on or about 10/29/2019. A break in continuity of professional services will result in a break in Grantee support, project delays and may cause deficiencies that would be identified from oversight organizations such as the Government Accountability Office and the DOT's Office of the Inspector General.
The Volpe Center is submitting this justification for exception to fair opportunity for Hill International to maintain continuity of support while the competitive task order solicitation is pursued.
E.STEPS TO FOSTER COMPETITION
The FRA is actively working on the next five year competitive vehicle. The GSA MAS Request For Quote (RFQ) was issued to all interested GSA vendors on 4/18/2019 and quotes are due to the FRA on 5/30/2019. Award is anticipated on or before 8/28/2019.
F.TECHNICAL OFFICE CERTIFICATION
The requirement set forth is initiated to satisfy a recognized Government need. As applicable, the specifications, and statement of work are limited to state the minimum needs of the Government. I certify that the above information which serves as the basis for the justification for other than full and open competition is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.
PART II - CONTRACTS SUPPORTING DATA
A. Description of the Procurement Action
This procurement action will result in an award of a Labor-Hour Task Order for Professional Engineering Services under SIN 871 on a non-competitive basis for the professional engineering services identified in Section A of this justification. The period of performance is 06/01/2019 through 10/28/2019.
B.Authority
Circumstances justifying limiting the source. In accordance with FAR Subpart 8.405-6(a)(1)(i)(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.
C.Best Value
Hill International represents the best value to the Government. GSA contracts were reviewed under SIN 871 and Hill International is the most capable vendor to ensure these services do not lapse. Hill International has the required past performance, a valid GSA contract with hourly pricing outlined for each professional labor category required and the ability to ensure consistent coverage for all states without interruption of services.
D.Efforts to Obtain Competition
Market research was conducted in August 2018 and the conclusion is there may be capable vendors under GSA schedule, SIN 871 - Professional Engineering Services. FRA is actively pursuing the next five year competitive vehicle with GSA Schedule, SIN 871 interested vendors. The GSA MAS RFQ was sent out to all GSA interested vendors on April 18, 2019 from the FRA acquisition office and quotes are due to FRA by 05/30/2019.
E.Fair and Reasonable Cost
The signature of the Contracting Officer provided below represents a determination that all proposed hourly rates for this interim period of performance effective 6/01/2019 - 10/28/2019 will be reviewed against the Offeror's GSA contract hourly rates and historical Government rates paid for the same professional services. There are three separate limited sources justifications that will be issued as part of the MTAC nationwide coverage and each limited source will be to the current incumbent vendor, thus allowing three different contractors to maintain the regional coverage areas uninterrupted until the new competitive vehicles are in place. Each task order will be reviewed and negotiated to ensure pricing is in line with current hourly rates.
