Aircraft Tires

Aircraft Tires Fixed Price with EPA Authority for Other than Full and Open Competition (10 U.S.C. 2304(f)(3)(B)): Within DLA's Electronic Business System (EBS), these tires all have an Acquisition Method Suffix Code (AMSC) C, defined in DFARS PGI 217.7506: "This part requires engineering source approval by the design control activity in order to maintain the quality of the part. Existing unique design capability, engineering skills, and manufacturing knowledge by the qualified source(s) require acquisition of the part from the approved source(s). The approved source(s) retain data rights, manufacturing knowledge, or technical data that are not economically available to the Government, and the data or knowledge is essential to maintaining the quality of the part. An alternate source must qualify in accordance with the design control activity's procedures, as approved by the cognizant Government engineering activity. The qualification procedures must be approved by the Government engineering activity having jurisdiction over the part in the intended application. If one source is approved, AMCs 3, 4, or 5 are valid. If at least two sources are approved or if data is adequate for an alternate source to qualify in accordance with the design control activity's procedures, AMCs 1 or 2 are valid;" or AMSC D, defined as: "The data needed to acquire this part competitively is not physically available, it cannot be obtained economically, nor is it possible to draft adequate specifications or any other adequate, economical description of the material for a competitive solicitation. AMCS 3, 4, or 5 are valid." (See Attachment 1). Because the government lacks the technical data necessary to allow additional sources to manufacture these tires, each NSN is only available from one or a limited number of sources. Under these circumstances, the use of other than full and open competition is permitted pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1). The agency either has taken or will take the steps discussed in Section 5 below to promote competition to the greatest extent possible.