Research and Development Services from the Mississippi Research Consortium (№11394741)

Mississippi Research Consortium (MRC)

Section 1 Introduction:

The Contractor shall provide engineering and scientific research to NASA and the tenants at the John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) in the areas of rocket engine and propulsion system testing, unmanned systems, autonomous systems, machine learning, computational modeling and simulation, component engineering, cybersecurity, advanced manufacturing, materials science, advanced sensors and
Instrumentation, model-based systems, engineering, process optimization, acoustics, magneto hydrodynamics, and associated scientific, computational and engineering. Examples of the anticipated research in these areas are described in Section 5 below.
The Mississippi Research Consortium (MRC) is a collaboration of four Mississippi universities dedicated to providing research and technology development to various state and federal agencies. The MRC consists of Jackson State University (JSU), Mississippi State University (MSU), University of Southern Mississippi (USM) and University of Mississippi (UM).

Section 2 Administering Institution:

The contract will be administered by a single MRC institution that will serve as the MRC liaison to NASA in the performance of this contract. The administering institution will be responsible for:
a. Receiving statements of work from the NASA Office of Procurement.
b. Distribute the SOW within three work days to each MRC institution office of sponsored research with instructions on the procedure and required schedule for submitting proposals.
c. Collecting and reviewing the proposals to verify the technical requirements are met, including budget and schedule.
d. Providing all submitted proposals to NASA, along with MRC recommendation of the proposal that best meets the requirements of the individual SOW and provides best value to the Government.
e. Provide the total cost of the proposal to government.
f. Entering into a contract with the MRC institution selected by NASA when a fixed cost research proposal is funded by NASA.
g. Performing general oversight and administrative functions.
h. Providing monthly invoices.
i. Providing status reports on project schedules to the MRC institutions, the NASA Contracting Officer (CO) and the NASA Contracting Officer Representatives (COR)
j. Require each Principal Investigator (PI) to provide a technical report at the conclusion of the research before final payment is made to the PI or the PI Institution
k. Provide NASA CO and COR one copy of all final reports within 90 days of the completion of each project.
l. Include the final report in the SSC"s Technical Documentation System prior to closeout of a project.
m. Close out all projects within 90 days of completion of each project.

The administering Institution will provide a management plan describing the statistics to be collected and periodically reported. NASA will select the administering institution based on an evaluation of "Proposals for Administration" which may be submitted by any MRC institution. The proposal for administration must include a detailed management plan that describes the process flow that would be used for operation of the MRC. The management plan narrative is limited to 10 pages and the entire proposal including pricing and personnel qualifications is limited to a total of 20 pages including attachments.

John C. Stennis Space Center
Stennis Space Center, MS 39529-6000

Reply to Attn of: EA02

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

1.0 AGENCY CONTRACTING ACTIVITY

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC), MS 39529-6000.

2.0 DESCRIPTION OF ACTION BEING APPROVED

The action to be approved is the sole source procurement of services from a particular source, the Mississippi Research Consortium (MRC). This action provides for the continuation of services currently being provided under contract NNS14AA17B and as previously provided under Contract NNS08AA98B. A contract between NASA and the MRC will give NASA and other resident agencies the capability to access emerging and unique capabilities available only from the various members of the Mississippi Research Consortium.

The Government intends to award a one (1) year base period with four (4) one-year option periods, Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) type contract. The composite value of the tasks to be issued annually is estimated to be $2000000 with a five-year estimated value total of $10000000. The minimum order limitation is
$10000 and the maximum order limitation is $1000000.

3.0 DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES REQUIRED

The work to be performed under this contract consists of (1) technical expertise for basic and applied engineering and scientific research for NASA and the resident agencies at SSC, (2) expertise for strategic planning, strategic business analysis, technology transfer, and economic impact analysis, and (3) administrative functions, and all labor, equipment, materials and supplies necessary to provide such support. Specific research areas of interest include rocket engine and propulsion system testing, unmanned systems, autonomous systems, machine learning, computational modeling and simulation, component engineering, cybersecurity, advanced manufacturing, materials science, advanced sensors and instrumentation, model-based systems engineering, process optimization, acoustics, magneto hydrodynamics, and associated scientific, computational and engineering fields.

The MRC consists of Jackson State University (JSU), Mississippi State University (MSU), University of Southern Mississippi (USM), University of Mississippi (UM), and other institutions as may be admitted to the Consortium upon a majority vote of the MRC Board of Directors.

The contract will be administered by a single MRC institution which will serve as the MRC liaison to NASA. The administering institution will be responsible for assigning research task orders to the appropriate MRC institutions, for performing general oversight and administrative functions, and for ensuring accountability and networking among MRC institutions.

4.0 STATUTORY AUTHORITY

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is FAR 6.302-
3 (a)(2)(ii) and 10 U. S. C. 2304 (c) (3), Industrial Mobilization Engineering, Development or Research Capability, or Expert Services.

5.0 CONTRACTOR"S UNIQUE QUALIFICATIONS

NASA and the resident agencies at SSC require ready access to university faculty, research staff and facilities. The institutions comprising the MRC are uniquely qualified to provide a wide range of research expertise.

According to the 2016 NSF rankin cs, the most recent available, the institutions comprising the MRC include top tier research institutions and highly ranked engineering and science programs. MSU ranked #93 in the nation with four of its engineering departments and the computer science department in the top 50 nationwide. UM ranked #138, USM ranked #184 and JSU ranked #253.

Each institution provides a distinctive array of research laboratories and facilities (MSU, UM, USM, and JSU) aligned with the interests of NASA and the SSC tenants.

The MRC contract also serves as the mechanism through which NASA and the SSC tenants work with universities that pro"j-de on-site academic offerings to accommodate the higher educational needs of SSC employees.

6.0 SOLICITATION EFFORTS

An announcement was published in Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOps) on April 20, 2018 expressing the Government"s intent to issue to a particular source a contract with a five-year period of performance. The announcement subsequently closed on May 4, 2018. No responses were received.

7.0 COST CERTIFICATION

The anticipated cost to the Government under this procurement action will be determined to be fair and reasonable to the Government on an individual competitive

Task Order basis. The resulting IDIQ contract will provide a not to exceed estimated value which was derived from historical data from previous MRC contracts.

8.0 MARKET SURVEY

By signed agreement, all the major institutions in the state of Mississippi have expressed agreement to participate in the MRC. The MRC Board of Directors has issued an invitation to other higher education institutions to participate, but none to date have initiated a request to be included in the Consortium (see Paragraph 10.0). Due to the specialized nature of the research required and the unique capabilities of the MRC universities in these specialized areas, no further market survey will be conducted; however, it should be noted that individual task orders under the MRC would be competed among the universities to ensure that competition is achieved to the maximum extent feasible.

9.0 OTHER SUPPORTING FACTS None
10.0 SOURCES EXPRESSING AN INTEREST IN THIS PROCUREMENT

Market research indicated that no sources expressed an interest in this acquisition. A pre-solicitation notice was posted on April 20, 2018, and closed on May 4, 2018, expressing the Government"s intent to contract with a particular source, the Mississippi Research Consortium, and that all responses would be addressed.

AGENCY ACTIONS TO REMOVE BARRIERS

Prior to the decision to acquire services from the Mississippi Research Consortium under the aforementioned Justification For Other Than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC), Stennis Space Center continually reviews their requirements, posts those requirements to the NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS) for comments noting that all responses will be appropriately addressed prior to the decision to acquire services from this particular source. SSC will continue to seek out all avenues allowing any and all prospective offerors the opportunity to propose a statement of capabilities that addresses the unique requirements of this acquisition that may further enhance competition.

CERTIFICATION AND APPROVALS

I certify that this justification for other than full and open competition is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief I further certify that the anticipated costs to the Government will be fair and reasonable. Cost and price analysis, verification of rates and factors proposed will be accomplished, and if necessary audits will be requested to determine reasonableness of proposed costs.

Robert Ross 6/29/2018
Contracting Officer"s Representative Planning, Development, and Analysis Office

Joe Schuyler 7/1/2018
Director
Engineering and Test Directorate

Charles J. Heim 7/2/2018
Supervisory Contracting Officer Office of Procurement

Monica Allison-Ceruti / Chief Counsel 7/2/2018
Office of Chief Counsel

CONCURRENCE:

Gerald Norris 7/3/2018
Procurement Officer Office of Procurement

APPROVED/DISAPPROVED:

Randy Galloway 7/5/2018
Competition Advocate
Office of the Director

SINCE ALL SIGNATURES ARE NOT CONSIDERED PICTURES, THEY WERE NOT POPULATED WHEN THIS DOCUMENT WAS INSERTED. THE ORIGINALLY SIGNED JOFOC IS IN THE OFFICIAL CONTRACT FILE