Notice of Intent to Noncompetitively Procure Annual SAFER One RT Plus Software Licenses and Maintenance Support

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) intends to negotiate and award a non-competitive purchase order to Industrial Scientific Corporation, 1 Life Way, Pittsburgh, PA 15205-750 to renew annual software licenses for SAFER One RT Plus and associated Toolboxes. The anticipated period of performance includes a base period from September 30, 2020 through September 29, 2021 plus four one-year options to extend the term of the contract. The NRC’s Office of Nuclear Materials and Safety Safeguards (NMSS), Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards and Environmental review (FCSE) is responsible in the event of an accident at a fuel cycle facility to respond to ensure the protection of both public health and safety and the environment. Accidents at fuel cycle facilities that pose the greatest risk are chemical releases from the materials used in processing of source and special nuclear material. Safer HAZMAT Responder can access and provide in real time an analysis of the effects of the chemical release that update with time and changes in the weather. There is an Agency need for the use of the software program, to include maintaining the software, upgrades or enhancements to the software, technical support and additional training. If the NRC is unable to obtain the required software, NRC staff will be unable to adequately assess the effects of a chemical release from a fuel cycle facility in real-time. This would have a significant and detrimental effect on the ability of the agency to respond to requests for assistance by the Federal, State, and local authorities for an independent assessment of the conditions on the ground. It should be noted that chemical dispersion software contains very detailed mathematical models and computational algorisms that are beyond the skill of average programmers and it is the software industry uses it instead of building its own. Further, SAFER One software is used within the NRC Emergency Support Center. As a result, SAFER One RT Plus is the only software the agency can presently use to provide needed computational resources. Therefore, the NRC intends to renew its licenses for SAFER One RT Plus software to satisfy these requirements because it is the only software that can satisfy that need. NRC confirmed with Industrial Scientific Corporation on July 6, 2020 that they do not have any authorized resellers, so this procurement can only be satisfied by non-competitive means. The authority for this acquisition is FAR 13.106-1(b), which permits soliciting from a single source if the contracting officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source is reasonably available.