Prototyping | The Contracting Education Academy

November 27, 2018 By cs

DoD ready to further define and expand fast moving procurement vehicles

The Defense Department’s acquisition office is planning on utilizing and further defining two expanded authorities focused on speed in the next few months.

DoD’s will release detailed policy early next year on “middle tier” acquisition — an authority given to the Pentagon in the 2016 defense authorization act, said Ellen Lord, DoD undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment.

Middle tier acquisition is an interim approach that focuses on delivering products in two to five years. It allows DoD to work outside traditional acquisition regulation if the program abides by certain criteria. The acquisition vehicle must use rapid prototyping or rapid fielding to deliver innovative technology and products that meet emerging military needs.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/acquisition/2018/11/dod-ready-to-further-define-and-expand-fast-moving-procurement-vehicles/

November 7, 2018 By cs

DoD says ‘OTA,’ industry says ‘Oy’

Just because apocryphal books live outside the Bible doesn’t mean you should never read them. And just because certain buying authorities live outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them.

The FAR covers a lot, but not everything, including, say Other Transaction Authority (OTA). OTA spending by the Defense Department is growing by triple digit rates, although it’s still a relatively small number. But it worries contractors. It came up repeatedly at this week’s Professional Services Council Vision 2018 conference. Kevin Fahey, the assistant secretary of Defense for acquisition, reassured the mostly vendor audience that “OTA use is not a get-out-acquisition-free pass.”

OTA has a little sister spawned by Section 804 of the 2016 Defense authorization bill. It gives DoD temporary authority to buy rapid prototyping and rapid fielding technologies — rapid, in the latter case, means within five years. The authority expires next September.

So for certain acquisitions, DoD has a lot of leeway to not use the FAR. Not total leeway, though — the government can’t just buy anything using the perceived convenience of OTA. The instrument is intended for prototype technologies and capabilities from non-traditional companies. For sure, those definitions leave a lot of leeway.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/tom-temin-commentary/2018/10/dod-says-ota-industry-says-oy/

August 30, 2018 By cs

OTAs: Preserving the authority

Other Transaction Authorities are the latest buzzwords in federal contracting, and for good reason.

OTAs have become critical to rapid prototyping in the defense realm, in some cases cutting off years from the time warfighters wait for new systems and capabilities.

OTAs are a business tool that let the government buy products and services using means other than those governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulations. These authorities, initially conceived by NASA in the 1950s and later expanded to the Defense Department in 1994, have recently surged in use and popularity — and praise. However, they also elicit a fair amount of criticism and debate about their future.

Fairness during the award process, soundness of proposals and lack of public information throughout the course of the award are among issues detractors highlight on OTAs. If their supporters want to preserve this acquisition instrument, they must address these concerns.

They’re not small concerns.

Keep reading this article at: https://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2018/08/03/insights-hawk-carlisle-ota.aspx

July 31, 2018 By cs

Navy’s new acquisition tool speeds up tech prototyping

A research and development collaboration management company has been awarded a contract to helm a technology prototype consortium as part of a new acquisition process employed by the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Atlantic, in Charleston, South Carolina.

SPAWAR awarded an other transaction authority to Advanced Technology International, of Summerville, South Carolina, for consortium management for SPAWAR’s Information Warfare Research Project (IWRP).

Under the contract, Advanced Technology International will manage a group of defense contractors who will complete projects for the government that address SPAWAR technology needs, and the consortium will facilitate competition for projects. Topics will be open to competition beginning in August 2018, the SPAWAR Systems Center Atlantic said.

The contract is worth $100 million over three years.

IWRP OTA is an acquisition tool that allows nontraditional industry partners to work with organizations across SPAWAR to prototype technology that supports naval information warfare capabilities. IWRP focuses on information technology areas such as cyberwarfare, cloud computing and data science.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.c4isrnet.com/home/2018/07/02/the-navys-new-acquisition-tool-speeds-up-tech-prototyping/

July 16, 2018 By cs

Alternative acquisition approach offers promise

Small businesses often lead the pack in innovation and agility, but cumbersome acquisition processes can stall the way forward when working with government agencies.

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) hopes to grease the skids between ingenuity and warfighters by offering a streamlined method for carrying out prototype projects and transitioning successes into follow-on production.

The Other Transaction Authority (OTA) methodology offers an alternative to the traditional rules outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) process. Congress officially implemented the OTA in 1994 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. In the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018, Congress doubled the dollar thresholds of OTAs that required approvals. In addition, the definition of prototype was broadened to include an analysis, process improvement, hardware and software.

Scott Stewart, technical director, Procurement Services Directorate, DISA, understands that today’s innovators in revolutionary and disruptive technologies come from a sector of the economy that faces fewer restrictions in procurement regulations than those the federal government poses. As a result, DISA executes and enters into OTA agreements to leverage leading-edge technologies, while appreciating and accommodating the limitations of these market leaders, he explains.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.afcea.org/content/alternative-acquisition-approach-offers-promise

The Defense Department’s acquisition office is planning on utilizing and further defining two expanded authorities focused on speed in the next few months.

Just because apocryphal books live outside the Bible doesn’t mean you should never read them. And just because certain buying authorities live outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them.

Other Transaction Authorities are the latest buzzwords in federal contracting, and for good reason.

A research and development collaboration management company has been awarded a contract to helm a technology prototype consortium as part of a new acquisition process employed by the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Atlantic, in Charleston, South Carolina.

Small businesses often lead the pack in innovation and agility, but cumbersome acquisition processes can stall the way forward when working with government agencies.

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