Sole Source Notice - Booth Space at CES Event

Notice of Intent:

The United States Department of Energy, Advanced Research Projects Agency –Energy (ARPA-E), intends to award a sole source Purchase Order to Consumer Technology Association. The Government intends to solicit and negotiate with only one source under the authority of FAR 6.302-1(a)(2) –Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

This synopsis is being published for informational purposes only. This proposed action is needed for renting a Booth at the Consumer Technology Association conference. Consumer Technology Association (CTA) is a technology trade organization that organizes CES. CES is an annual trade show presenting new products and advances in technology. Annual attendance is in excess of 100,000 people, making it one of the largest shows of its kind. Failure to support this requirement would adversely affect representation for DOE. If the services are not provided, DOE would not be able to present the Department’s contributions to technology development and deployment at CES. The applicable North American Industry Classification System Code (NAICS) for this requirement is 532289 –All Other Consumer Goods Rental. Business size standard for NAICS 532289 is $12.5M.

The statutory authority for permitting other than full and open competition for this requirement is pursuant to 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) and FAR Part 6 for the aforementioned requirement based on the application of FAR 6.302-1(a)(2), only one source is capable of providing the supplies or services.

ARPA-E is looking to have a 600 square foot booth in the North Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center for January 7-10. ARPA-E plans to use the Booth to communicate the mission and technology supported by the agency, providing an opportunity for technology business leaders to connect with the agency.

The CTA Platform main competency is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which is not offered by competitors. For this reason, Consumer Technology Association is the only company that can meet DOE’s requirement.

The Government leveraged internet search engines to conduct market research to assess availability of the product. But all companies lacked the following necessary function critical to ARPA-E:

• Presence at the Consumer Electronics Show.

DOE and more specifically ARPA-E have a need for a Booth at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Consumer Technology Association (CTA) is only technology trade organization that organizes CES. CES is an annual trade show presenting new products and advances in technology. Annual attendance is in excess of 100,000 people, making it one of the largest shows of its kind. Failure to support this requirement would adversely affect representation for DOE. If the services are not provided, DOE would not be able to present the Department’s contributions to technology development and deployment at CES. The booth will assist DOE communicating its work and mission to the public and to businesses that might extend the Department’s work. The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) Platform main competency is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which is not offered by competitors. For this reason, Consumer Technology Association is the only company that can meet both DOE’s requirement.

Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations. However, all responsible sources may submit a capability statement in response to DOE’s intent to purchase on a sole source basis. Any capability statements shall be considered by the Government if received by 2:30 p.m. local (Washington D.C.) time, Thursday, March 28, 2024. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. A determination by the Government to change the acquisition strategy for the proposed requirement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government.

Contractors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) prior to award. You may contact SAM by telephone at 866-606-8220 or online at https://beta.sam.gov/. The anticipated award date for this acquisition is March 29, 2024. Any information, including capability statements, should be e-mailed to farwa.nawaz@hq.doe.gov, no later than by 2:30 p.m. local (Washington D.C.) time, Friday, March 28, 2024. Only inquiries/information received by this date will be considered. Be advised that all correspondence sent via e-mail shall contain a subject line that reads " Consumer Technology Association.”