Weapon Effects Simulation: Interim In-Service Support

On this page

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

Attestation of assurance

The fairness monitor (FM) hereby provides the unqualified assurance statement below concerning the Weapon Effects Simulation (WES) Interim In-Service Support (ISS) procurement process up to and including the cancellation of the solicitation.

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

Original signed by:

Activity requirement

Samson was engaged on August 12, 2020, as a FM to observe the procurement process for the WES interim ISS, issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) on behalf of the Department of National Defence (DND) as a result of solicitation number W8486-217384/A. Samson is an independent third party with respect to this activity.

This report covers the activities of the FM starting with the preparation for the request for information (RFI) that was published on May 29, 2023, until the cancellation of the solicitation in August 2024.

The original equipment manufacturer (OEM) holds all Intellectual Property (IP) for the WES equipment and a portion of the software used by the program from the original contract. A procurement strategy was developed in March 2022 that resulted in the scope of the commercial WES requirements being divided into 2 contracts.

Due to the IP rights belonging to the OEM, there was a need for a sole source contract whereby the scope was to include:

• maintenance and repair of the existing WES equipment
• exercise control operations
• technology support
• software upgrades
• licenses

The second contract’s scope consisted of a competitive contract that was to include:

• warehouse operations
• site management
• field service representatives

DND has a requirement for the continuation of the ISS for the WES System located at the 4 Canadian Army bases across Canada. The service support contractor will be responsible for:

• warehouse operations
• site management
• WES equipment level 1 maintenance
• kitting and de-kitting of soldiers and vehicles
• soldier briefs
• exercise operations support

The proposed contract is expected to be for a period of 6 years, plus 8 one-year option periods.

We reviewed all 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
• 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

Request for information phase

The FM reviewed the procurement strategy, as well as the statement of work (SOW) and draft Request for Proposal (RFP) for both contracts. Some fairness related comments and questions were provided to the contracting authority (CA), and these were satisfactorily resolved.

An RFI was posted via CanadaBuys on May 29, 2023, and closed on July 7, 2023. The intent of this RFI was to seek industry feedback on their level of interest and capability in potentially participating into a future request for proposal (RFP) by sharing the draft RFP and all relevant available documentation for the WES interim ISS service support contractor requirement.

Canada received 3 RFI responses by the closing date, including the OEM. The responses provided by the suppliers included comments, as well as requests for clarifications on some of the requirements. Based on the responses received, there were no requirements in the RFI documents provided that would preclude any of the suppliers from bidding on the WES interim ISS RFP. The FM reviewed the RFI document, and all of the responses provided by interested parties. No fairness issues were identified.

On August 11, 2023, the CA and technical authority (TA) met with the OEM to discuss the incumbent contract closeout, as well as to plan for the maintenance of the WES equipment and capabilities during the transition period preceding the new contracts. The OEM also met with the CA and TA on December 14, 2023 to review questions and answers related to the draft RFP and SOW for the sole source contract. The FM was in attendance at both of these meetings, and no fairness issues were identified.

On December 14, 2023, another RFI was published to request feedback from industry on the potential for an Indigenous participation plan to be included in the future RFP process. The FM reviewed the RFI, as well as the responses received from 3 suppliers. No fairness issues were identified.

Cancellation of solicitation

On Friday May 24, 2024, PWGSC received confirmation from DND that they will no longer be pursuing a competitive RFP at this time due to lack of funding for this portion of the work. Rather than proceeding with 2 contracts (that is 1 competitive and 1 sole source) it was decided that Canada will only proceed with a sole source contract to the OEM for the IP related work. In lieu of the requirements for the competitive RFP, it was decided that the Canadian Army will be conducting the warehousing, equipment distribution, operations support and field service representative work in-house (that is the non-IP related work). No fairness issues were identified.

Reference documents

Documents related to solicitation W8486-217384/A are available on CanadaBuys or through the project office.