Notice of Intent to Award - EBSCO Industries, Inc. for Serials Subscription Management (Jobber) Services

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) intends to award a single-source fixed-price contract to EBSCO Industries, Inc. for Serials Subscription Management (Jobber) Service. The Contractor will provide serials subscription management service(s) (professional serials jobber) to oversee and coordinate the library’s serials subscriptions. The serials/publications are required by customers at HECSA and HQ Libraries (the Requiring Activity or RA) in the performance of their jobs. Serials are items in many formats published serially in the U.S. and abroad, including common magazines, newspapers, and technical or specialty journals (both print and electronic). Basic serials subscription management services provided by the vendor include placing new and renewal orders with publishers, prepaying publishers, claiming missing issues and providing a range of administrative services. Price and publication information and management reports are routinely provided. In addition, the vendor must

provide additional serials management and automation services including automated data exchange with the library’s online cataloging and discovery systems (Currently EOS and EBSCO Discover) and managing access to electronic journals. The vendor shall furnish all qualified personnel, facilities, and supplies for the placement of new and renewal subscriptions to single or multiple addresses for domestic and foreign serials and periodicals published in electronic and/or paper and other requested formats, and for related services.The period of performance for this requirement shall be 01 July 2021 to 30 June 2022 for the base year, 01 July 2022 to 30 June 2023 for option year 1, and July 01 2023 to 30 June 2023 for option year 2 (36 months in total). No competition is being sought unless/until another source is identified. EBSCO has been determined to be the only provider of a Serials Subscription Management Service that meets all the requirements of the PWS.  EBSCO alone has been found to allow the library to obtain each and every one of the journal titles its customers require, meet the online ordering and claiming requirements listed, and offer seamless interaction with the current EBSCO Discover Service, the essential tool used by customers to locate and access all library resources including all journals. EBSCO is the only vendor with a unique interface that allows instant cataloging and access to every journal ordered without duplicate effort on the part of library staff. The only other way to achieve the range of content and service equal to EBSCO’s Serials Subscription Management Service is to subscribe to each journal title individually or to subscribe to the services of multiple jobber vendors,  at a cost beyond the library’s ability to pay.  Once the range of titles is subscribed to, however, in both these previous scenarios, library staff time must be found and paid for the additional hours needed to catalog and input these purchases into the EBSCO Discovery tool.  The most efficient and cost-effective way to purchase the numerous journals required by our users at HQ, HECSA and IWR, therefore, would be to renew the current serials subscription management (serials jobber) contract with EBSCO.  This is a special notice prepared in accordance with the requirements in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 5.2 Synopses of Proposed Contract Actions. A solicitation will not be posted.PSC – DH10 – IT and TELCOM –  IT and Telecom - Platform as a Service: Database, Mainframe, MiddlewareNAICS - 519130 – Internet Publishing and Broadcasting and Web Search PortalsHowever, any firm that believes it can meet this requirement may give written notification to the Contracting Officer within fifteen (15) days of publication of this announcement. Supporting evidence must be in sufficient detail to demonstrate the ability to comply with the requirement. Responses received will be evaluated; however, a determination by the Government to compete the proposed procurement based on the responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers intends on proceeding with awarding a fixed price contract to EBSCO Industries, Inc.Point of contact for this requirement is Giuseppe G. Mirizzi at phone: 703-428-7081 or email: Giuseppe.G.Mirizzi@usace.army.mil.Address: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, HECSA, 7701 Telegraph Road, Alexandria, VA 22315.