CH-149 Cormorant Search and Rescue Helicopter In-Service Support

On this page

• Attestation of assurance
• Project requirement
• Fairness monitoring engagement and observations
• Reference documents

Attestation of assurance

The fairness monitor (FM) hereby provides the unqualified assurance statement below concerning CH-149 Cormorant Search and Rescue Helicopter In-Service Support (ISS) procurement process up to and including the conclusion of the industry engagement phase.

It is our professional opinion that the competitive selection process we observed or monitored was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.

Original signed by:

Project requirement

Samson was engaged on July 5, 2021, as an FM to observe the procurement process for the CH-149 Cormorant Search and Rescue Helicopter ISS, issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada on behalf of the Department of National Defence (DND), as part of solicitations W8485-226481/A to C. Samson is an independent third party with respect to this activity.

This report covers the activities of the FM starting with the issuance of a letter of interest (LOI) on May 19, 2021, until the end of the industry engagement phase on September 22, 2023.

The objective of this project was to provide ISS for DND and the Royal Canadian Air Force CH-149 Cormorant helicopter fleet.

We reviewed all of the information provided and observed all relevant activities subsequent to our engagement.

This report includes:

• our attestation of assurance
• a summary of the scope and objectives of our assignment
• the relevant observations from the activities undertaken

Fairness monitoring engagement and observations

In accordance with the terms of our engagement, we:

• familiarized ourselves with the relevant documents
• observed the procurement activities
• identified fairness-related matters to the contracting and technical authorities
• ensured that responses and actions were reasonable and appropriate

Industry engagement phase

An LOI was posted via Buyandsell.gc.ca (W8485-226481/A) on May 19, 2021 to assist with the development of an effective and economical optimized sustainment enterprise to provide ISS for the CH-149 Cormorant helicopter fleet. The LOI closing date was June 21, 2021.

One amendment was posted on Buyandsell.gc.ca on May 20, 2021. Eleven vendors provided feedback on questions of interest. A meeting took place on September 7, 2021, with 1 respondent to clarify some aspects of their response.

A second LOI was published via Buyandsell.gc.ca (W8485-226481/B) on April 26, 2022 as a continuance of the expired LOI and to advise suppliers that a non-mandatory plenary session would take place, followed by optional one-on-one sessions. The closing date of the second LOI was July 26, 2022.

Thirteen vendors and 1 government agency registered to participate in the industry day held on May 9, 2022, to engage a dialogue regarding DND’s proposed requirements. Subsequent to this plenary session, 8 vendors participated in one-on-one sessions. The presentation for the industry day as well as answers to questions raised by vendors during one-on-one sessions were published on Buyandsell.gc.ca on June 2, 2022, through an amendment to the LOI.

A third LOI was published via CanadaBuys (W8485-226481/C) on September 7, 2023, to provide an update to industry. It closed on September 22, 2023. Industry was advised that upgrade work on the helicopters would be performed, and that Canada made the decision to extend the current ISS contract until full operating capability of the upgraded helicopters is achieved.

The FM reviewed the LOI documents and feedback provided by interested respondents on questions of interest. The FM observed the plenary session and one-on-one sessions. The FM reviewed all answers to questions raised by vendors during one-on-one sessions that were subsequently published to ensure that fairness considerations were satisfactorily addressed.

No fairness issues were identified.

Reference documents

Documents related to the solicitations W8485-226481/A to C are available on CanadaBuys or through the project office.