Inactive

This is a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Pre-Award Notice of Intent to Award a Single Source Purchase Order to RDF Products for 16 UHF Frequency Direction Finder Antennas in accordance with the... This is a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Pre-Award Notice of Intent to Award a Single Source Purchase Order to RDF Products for 16 UHF Frequency Direction Finder Antennas in accordance with the FAA's Acquisition Management System (AMS). SINGLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION Title of Procurement Procurement of 16 RDF Products’ UHF Antennas for FAA Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) Direction Finders (DF) Nature of Procurement Action This is a single source fixed price Purchase Order to RDF Products to procure 16 RDF UHF Direction Finding (DF) antennas to be delivered as soon as possible. Ten of these antennas are needed for installation into 10 Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) SUV fleet vehicles that were procured and delivered between July of 2017 and February of 2018. The remaining six antennas are needed as readily available spares in the event that a given unit needs to be replaced. Total Estimated Value The total estimated value for 16 UHF Direction Finder antennas is $65,000.00. Description of Supplies/Services Spectrum Engineering requires 16 RDF Products UHF Direction Finding antennas immediately for installation into the 10 Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) SUV fleet vehicles that were procured and delivered between July of 2017 and February of 2018. Six additional antenna units are required to have readily available spares in the event that a given unit needs to be replaced. These spare units will be strategically placed to minimize downtime for these operational vehicles. Spare units will also be used for on-the-job training where each vehicle is located. The required UHF DF antennas must be compatible with the existing RDF Direction Finding equipment integrated into each Spectrum RFI vehicle. These UHF DF antennas will be installed in Spectrum’s fleet of RFI vehicles that have already been procured and delivered. These antennas will be integrated into an existing suite of equipment; therefore, the DF antennas must not only be capable of supporting mobile applications, but also be compatible with Spectrum Engineering’s existing vehicle direction finding equipment. Authority Authority for single source procurement is provided by AMS policy section 3.2.2.4. Rationale Supporting Use of a Single Source The FAA Spectrum Engineering Office, AJW-1C, is tasked with providing a safe and efficient National Airspace System (NAS) for the flying public through the elimination of Radio Frequency Interference (RFI). The Spectrum Engineering Office utilizes several tools in order to ensure that any Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) to the NAS is resolved in a timely and accurate manner. One of the key RFI resolution tools used to accomplish this mission are the Spectrum RFI vehicles. Spectrum Testing and Engineering Analysis, AJW-1C4, has configured the fleet with a suite of software and test equipment used for RFI identification and elimination. AJW-1C4 has been tasked by FAA Technical Operations Group (TOG) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) Spectrum Office for FY21 to expand the RFI detection capabilities of the vehicles from the existing VHF band to now include the FAA UHF communication band. To meet the FAA TOG’s and DOT’s mandate to expand RFI detection to include UHF frequencies, this Single Source Justification will allow the procurement of DF UHF antenna equipment from the only known vendor that meets the requirements of compatibility with the existing direction finding equipment and provides the required FAA UHF frequency band. In addition to the frequency range requirements, the antenna gain needs to maximize sensitivity and the ability to detect low level interfering signals. Impact. If the 16 UHF Frequency DF Antennas are not procured, Spectrum Engineering will not meet the FAA Technical Operations Group and the DOT Spectrum Office mandate to expand the RFI frequency capabilities to cover the FAA UHF frequency bands to address threats that exist in this mission-critical band. Failure to procure the DF antennas will render the fleet incapable of performing RFI Investigation missions beyond the existing VHF band capability. There is no substitution for a different UHF antenna. No other UHF direction finding antenna exists that is compatible with the existing direction finding equipment located in the Spectrum RFI vehicle and meets the required antenna frequency and gain requirements. Failure to procure a compatible UHF antenna will result in increased RFI in the UHF band. An increase in RFI negatively affects the efficiency of the NAS, resulting in flight delays, increased operating costs, and safety concerns. Specialized Expertise. Spectrum Engineering developed a software suite to interface with existing equipment previously purchased by the field offices. This software was developed in 2012 to respond to the need for one unified interface to process data inputs from a direction finder and a spectrum analyzer. After a review of equipment utilized by the field offices, it was determined that the RDF Products Direction Finder was available from RDF Products and met the engineering requirements for RFI missions. The RDF Products Direction Finder System works together with a ruggedized, vehicle-mounted PC to accomplish Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) missions. Standardization. The Spectrum Engineering RFI vehicle utilizes an RDF Direction Finding system to locate interference. The DF receiver purchased and deployed with the vehicles is capable of operating over a wide frequency range. The DF antenna deployed with the RFI vehicle is only capable of detecting interference in the VHF band of frequencies. The use of another UHF direction finding antenna is not possible with the equipment suite in the RFI vehicle. The proprietary direction finder interface is not compatible with any other UHF direction finding antenna working in the required frequency band with a minimum antenna gain. The use of another UHF antenna would require a complete redesign of the equipment suite integrated into the Spectrum RFI vehicle. Time Constraints. The need to expand the frequency capabilities of the Spectrum Engineering RFI vehicle fleet is immediate. New threats and sources of interference effecting the UHF band have resulted in the request by the FAA and the DOT for an expansion of vehicle detection capabilities. The substitution of another UHF direction finding antenna will result in a complete redesign of the Spectrum RFI vehicle resulting in unacceptable signal detection capability delays.