Brand Name Justification, Tyco, Access Control System

1. Identifications a. Agency: National Park Serviceb. Contracting Office: Glacier National Park 2. Description of the action being approved:The National Park Service (NPS) shall be soliciting for an access control system as part of the rehabilitation of the West Entrance Station Solicitation. The documents included with the solicitation call for specific brand name products that are peculiar to one manufacturer. This written justification provides approval for limiting competition to the listed brand name products as authorized by the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). 3. Description of supplies and services: Products Estimated total cost for materials Tyco Access Control Controller $3,000Tyco Access Control Card Readers $2,400 4. Authority: a. 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1): Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.b. FAR Part 11.105: The Brand Name products are essential to the Government's requirements, and market research indicates other companies' similar products do not meet and cannot be modified to meet the agency's needs.c. FAR 6.302-1: The use of the name brand products are essential to the Government's requirements, thereby precluding consideration of a product manufactured by another company. 5. The description of the product's unique qualifications or the unique nature of the acquisition:Glacier National Park's current systems utilize a specialized, proprietary hardware/software system manufactured by Tyco. Other brands of security systems use their own proprietary protocols that do not interface with the Tyco system. 6. Efforts to obtain competition:a. Efforts to ensure offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable:For acquisitions over $25,000 the solicitation will be issued on the Government's Point of Entry, FedBizOpps.gov. b. Presolicitation notice per FAR 5.2:For acquisitions over $25,000 a presolicitation notice shall be posted on the Government's Point of Entry, FedBizOpps.gov unless the exception noted at FAR Part 5.202(a)(13) applies. 7. Determination that costs will be fair & reasonable:The Government shall compete the prime contract and price shall be a major evaluation factor. So as to offer the lowest price, prime offerors will compete subcontracts based upon price. Thus, subcontractors will seek to obtain competitive pricing, from their suppliers. Suppliers will in-turn seek to provide competitive pricing for the products they provide and obtain competitive pricing from the product manufacturer. Different manufacturers typically compete to sell their products to the different suppliers and thus the manufacturers strive to provide competitive pricing to the suppliers. 8. Description of the market research conducted:Approximately three years ago the Park conducted extensive research into the various security systems available. A contract was competitively bid to install an access control system in the Headquarters Administration building. This system and its associated server are the "heart" of the access control system for the entire park. The access control systems in all other facilities must interface with this system. The Tyco system was selected because it provided the most cost effective solution to our needs. 9. Other facts supporting other than full & open competition: a. Reason why documents suitable for full & open competition have not been developed:Refer to item 5 above. b. Data, estimated costs or other rationale as to the extent or harm to the Government:Glacier's existing access control system controls numerous structures with hundreds of access points. If a different system other that the one described above were to be used, a complete parallel monitoring system would need to be installed in the Park's Communication Center. This would require additional personnel to monitor that system in addition the existing system. This would place the additional burden on the Government to hire and train additional personnel to operate, troubleshoot and monitor the different system. 10. Interested Sources:None to our knowledge. 11. Actions to remove barriers to competition in the future for similar acquisitions:In the future when the current system becomes obsolete the Park will conduct competition to choose a new system.