SAM #1305M226F0378

Award for AssetWorks eQUIP Software Licenses, Implementation, and Support for NOAA CO-OPS

NOAA's Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services (CO-OPS) has awarded a sole source contract to AssetWorks USA Inc. for eQUIP software licenses, implementation, and support. - Award is for eQUIP software, which provides integrated asset management for scientific instrumentation and field-deployed assets - Includes management of consumables, calibration records, maintenance histories, repair tracking, equipment requests, shipping workflows, and lifecycle management - AssetWorks is the only OEM and vendor mentioned; no other companies offer eQUIP on GSA schedules - Alternatives evaluated (ServiceNow, MMS Development, Smartsheets, Archibus) did not meet NOAA's requirements for functionality, customizability, or IT security compliance - No specific part numbers or purchase quantities provided - Award justified by eQUIP's unique capabilities and compliance with NOAA cybersecurity and operational needs

Description

***NOAA'S ACQUISITION & GRANTS OFFICE, EASTERN ACQUISITION DIVISION-NORFOLK, NATIONAL OCEAN SERVICE (NOS) CENTER FOR OPERATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PRODUCTS AND SERVICES (CO-OPS) NEGOTIATED, ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS, UNDER AUTHORITY OF RFO FAR 12.102(a), WITH ASSETWORKS USA INC OUT OF PITTSBURGH, PA FOR eQUIP SOFTWARE LICENSES, IMPLEMENTATION AND SUPPORT THAT IS ON THEIR GSA CONTRACT.

***THE SOLE SOURCE DETERMINATION IS BASED ON THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION'S (NOAA) REQUIREMENT THAT ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP SOFTWARE IS THE ONLY CURRENTLY AVAILABLE PRODUCT THAT SATISFIES NOAA CYBER SECURITY REQUIREMENTS AND CO-OPS' OPERATIONAL ASSET MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS WITH MINIMAL DEVELOPMENT RISK, ACCEPTABLE IMPLEMENTATION COST, AND NEAR-TERM DEPLOYMENT CAPABILITY.

THE GOVERNMENT HAS CONDUCTED MARKET RESEARCH, DEVELOPED REQUIREMENTS OVER SEVERAL YEARS, EVALUATED MULTIPLE ALTERNATIVES (INCLUDING SERVICENOW, MMS DEVELOPMENT, COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS SUCH AS SMARTSHEETS, AND MOST RECENTLY ARCHIBUS.  WHILE MULTIPLE PRODUCTS WERE CONSIDERED, ASSETWORKS’ EQUIP WAS DETERMINED TO PROVIDE THE ONLY FULLY CAPABLE SERVICE TO THE GOVERNMENT BASED ON FUNCTIONAL FIT, IT SECURITY REQUIREMENTS, IMPLEMENTATION RISK, DEPLOYMENT SCHEDULE, AND LIFECYCLE COST.

OTHER ALTERNATIVES ALL HAD LIMITATIONS THAT ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP DID NOT: SERVICENOW DOES NOT HAVE THE CUSTOMIZABILITY AND DEDICATED ASSET MANAGEMENT DATABASE CAPABILITY; ARCHIBUS CANNOT CUSTOMIZE TO THE DEGREE REQUIRED FOR CO-OPS’ NEEDS; AND MOST OTHER COMMERCIAL OPTIONS CANNOT FUNCTION FULLY IN NOAA’S EIS, OR ARE NOT FEDRAMP APPROVED, OR BOTH.

ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP MEETS CO-OPS' UNIQUE OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR MANAGING SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTATION, FIELD-DEPLOYED ASSETS, CONSUMABLES, CALIBRATION RECORDS, MAINTENANCE HISTORIES, REPAIR TRACKING, EQUIPMENT REQUESTS, SHIPPING WORKFLOWS, AND LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT WITHIN A SINGLE INTEGRATED PLATFORM. SERVICENOW AND ARCHIBUS BOTH REQUIRED MULTIPLE MODULES TO PERFORM THE REQUIRED ACTIONS. ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP PROVIDES FUNCTIONALITY THAT WOULD OTHERWISE REQUIRE SUBSTANTIAL CUSTOM DEVELOPMENT EFFORT IN ALTERNATIVE PLATFORMS, RESULTING IN HIGHER IMPLEMENTATION COSTS, INCREASED SCHEDULE RISK, AND DELAYED OPERATIONAL BENEFIT. NEITHER SERVICENOW NOR ARCHIBUS WAS FOUND CAPABLE OF THE SAME LEVEL OF CUSTOMIZATION. ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP CAN BE DEPLOYED AND OPERATIONAL IN THE NEAR TERM, WHEREAS INTERNALLY DEVELOPED SOLUTIONS REMAIN DEPENDENT ON FUTURE SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES AND INTERNAL STAFF CAPABILITIES. THE SAME WAS TRUE FOR SERVICENOW AND ARCHIBUS. WE DO NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT SMARTSHEETS-TRAINED PERSONNEL TO BE ABLE TO DESIGN AND BUILD THE REQUIRED FUNCTIONS. ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP DIRECTLY SUPPORTS NOAA'S STRATEGIC SUSTAINABILITY ROADMAP BY PROVIDING THE AUTHORITATIVE ASSET INVENTORY, MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT, LIFECYCLE TRACKING, AND CONDITION ASSESSMENT CAPABILITIES NECESSARY TO IMPROVE OBSERVING SYSTEM RELIABILITY, REDUCE OPERATIONAL RISK, AND SUPPORT LONG-TERM INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING. WHILE SERVICENOW AND ARCHIBUS COULD EACH PROVIDE SOME OF THESE CAPABILITIES, NEITHER COULD PROVIDE ALL OF THEM. WHILE SMARTSHEETS COULD PERFORM THESE FUNCTIONS, THERE IS NOT SUFFICIENT INTERNAL STAFF TO PERFORM THE CUSTOMIZATION REQUIRED. ASSETWORKS’ eQUIP PLATFORM SUPPORTS MOBILE OPERATIONS, CONFIGURABLE WORKFLOWS, ASSET HIERARCHIES, CALIBRATION MANAGEMENT, REPORTING, AND ANALYTICS THAT ALIGN WITH REQUIREMENTS DEVELOPED BY THE CO-OPS ASSET MANAGEMENT WORKING GROUP AND REFINED OVER SEVERAL YEARS OF OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE. NO OTHER SYSTEM EVALUATED COULD PERFORM ALL OF THESE FUNCTIONS.

ASSETWORKS IS THE SOLE GSA CONTRACT HOLDER FOR eQUIP SOFTWARE LICENSES AND SUPPORT. NO OTHER VENDORS WERE FOUND ON GSA WHEN SEARCHING eQUIP SOFTWARE.

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