For FY25 replacements under the micro-purchase threshold (~$10k), how are you justifying COTS rugged tablets and tool kits when they meet the requirement? I’m prioritizing competition, market research, and lifecycle cost per FAR/DFARS, but still getting pushback on durability and sustainment — any examples where warranty terms and past performance tipped the decision?
We pushed a COTS rugged tablet under the ~$10k micro-purchase, , and got past the durability gripe by making a 3-year advanced-exchange warranty (48-hr swap) and annual battery refresh a must-have, then citing CPARS and vendor field-failure rates in the file. > market research, and lifecycle cost per FAR/DFARS, but still getting pushback on durability Agree — that combo plus a 10% on-hand spare pool and an NTE depot repair cap made our TCO beat the MIL-SPEC quote. If your KO’s still balking, have you tried a 30-day burn-in with the swap terms baked in?
Quick win for us was bundling the quote with an OEM letter guaranteeing 5-year parts/battery availability, the vendor’s MTBF/RMA stats (≈≤2%/yr, 5-day turn), and a belt-and-suspenders 1-per-10 micro-sparing line — sustainment concerns eased without going MIL-SPEC. @lsullivan58, anchoring the file to FAR 12.101’s “to the maximum extent practicable” plus a sister unit’s past-performance note sealed it; would your reviewers accept that combo?