Notice of Intent to Award Sole Source.

The Veterans Administration, Health Revenue Center, (HRC) Topeka, KS intends to award a sole source purchase order for Disaster Recovery Services to Sungard Planning Solutions, Wayne, PA, IAW FAR 6.302-1 and 41 U.S.C. 253(C) (1). The VA HRC presently operates a nationwide call center and desktop IVR system that supports the Veterans Administrations proprietary Employee Self Service personnel benefits system for 230,000 VA employees nationwide. The VA HRC has previously contracted with Sungard for continuity of operations in the event of any kind of natural or unnatural disaster. Sungard is the only known provider that maintains a fully operational hot site and cold site for disaster recovery services that is geographically feasible to our locale. This contract action is a follow on action to a previously synopsized requirement for disaster recovery services and award to any other source would result in substantial duplication of cost to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition. The sole source purchase order provides for hardware, software, access to 54 workstations, high-speed data lines, testing, and connectivity between the hot/cold sites, the Ameritech PBX switch located in Chicago, IL., the HRC, and the mainframe located in Austin, Texas. The HRC is currently in the process of changing from the VA=92s proprietary Employee Self Service system to the Office of Personnel Management's Employee Express system. It is anticipated that once this transition is complete this service will no longer be required. This sole source award will be made to obtain approximately seven months of additional disaster recovery service. This is not a request for competitive proposals; however, all interested parties who believe they can meet the requirements are invited to submit in writing complete information describing their ability to meet these requirements. Information received as a result of this notice will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. A determination to conduct a competitive procurement will be at the sole discretion of the Contracting Officer. Responses related to this notice shall be in writing and must be received no later than January 21, 2003. POC is Barry Fetzer, Contracting Officer, VA HRC, 3401 SW 21, Bldg 9, Topeka, KS 66604. The value of this acquisition is below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold. This is a simplified acquisition.*****