Notice of Sole Source Award for Monaco Fire Alarm Radio Frequency Survey

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

This document justifies the Air Force's use of other than full and open competition for the procurement of facility fire alarm panels. The goal is to standardize on a limited selection of brand-name manufacturers to reduce costs associated with training, maintenance, and repair, thereby increasing mission performance and efficiency.

• Procurement of facility fire alarm panels for the remainder of the Fiscal Year through September 30, 2026.

• Support for new fire alarm panel purchases across CONUS and OCONUS locations.

• Standardization on a limited number of brand-name manufacturers per installation.

• Estimated Contract Cost: $14,800,000.

• This J&A supports multiple contracts, not a single specific acquisition.

• This document is a Justification and Approval (J&A) for sole-source or limited competition, not a solicitation for proposals.

• Market research was conducted, including a SAM.gov notice and a survey of small businesses, with no vendors expressing interest in direct competition for this specific approach.

• The document acknowledges that small businesses may be involved at the distributor or installer level.

• The primary justification is the significant cost savings and efficiency gains from standardizing training and maintenance on a limited set of manufacturers, estimated at $22M in training costs and 375K hours over 5 years.

• The Air Force aims to reduce the total cost of ownership by enabling in-house repair and programming, improving technician expertise, and reducing equipment downtime.

• A SAM.gov notice was posted on June 1, 2021, remaining open for 15 days, with no vendor responses.

Other / Unclassified

This document is a Single Source Justification (Simplified Acquisition) for a contract action related to the Monaco Fire Alarm Radio Frequency Survey. It outlines the rationale for soliciting from a single source, Monaco Enterprises, Inc.

This document is relevant to potential bidders as it explains why the opportunity is being sole-sourced and not open to full and open competition. It details:

• Purpose: To discover and identify the cause of radio frequency interference with the existing Monaco fire alarm communication system.
• Justification for Sole Source: The Monaco D-21 system is proprietary, requiring specific training and licensing from Monaco for analysis and maintenance. Other contractors cannot analyze the system without this.
• Efforts to Obtain Competition: A Sources Sought notice was published, but interested companies could not provide proof of official licensing from Monaco. The proprietary nature of the system prevents other contractors from upgrading or servicing it.
• Limitations: Competition is currently limited until the entire alarm system is replaced.
• Contracting Officer's Determination: The contracting officer determined that only a single source is reasonably available in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b)(1).

Other / Unclassified

This memorandum from the 28th Civil Engineer Squadron at Ellsworth AFB requests approval to standardize on Monaco Enterprises as the sole manufacturer for fire alarm panel units. The request is based on analyses of inventory control, supply chain availability, and technician familiarity.

This document indicates a potential future procurement or standardization effort for fire alarm panels. It highlights the current inventory, replacement value, and remaining service life of existing systems, with Monaco having the largest share. The justification for standardization includes readily available local parts and service, technician expertise with Monaco systems, and the ability to avoid additional costs associated with third-party repairs for other manufacturers. The base is also transitioning to a full point-to-point reporting system, which is currently Monaco-based. Bidders interested in supplying fire alarm panels or related services should note this standardization effort and the preference for Monaco products due to existing infrastructure and support.