Contracting Cone
FAR Based Strategies
Federal Supply Schedules
Commercial Items
Simplified Acquisitions
Contracting by Negotiation
IDIQ
Letter Contracts
Agreements
Small Business
Broad Agency Announcement
Commercial Solutions Opening
Statutory Strategies
SBIR/STTR
Other Transactions
Procurement for Experiments
R&D Agreements
Cooperative R&D Agreement
Partnership Intermediary Agreement
Technology Investment Agreement
Commercial Solutions Opening
***Section 803 of the FY22NDAA provided the DoD with permanent CSO authority, codified in 10 U.S.C. §3458 – Authority to Acquire Innovative Commercial Products and Commercial Services using General Solicitation Competitive Procedures ***
Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) is a competitive process to obtain solutions or new capabilities that fulfill requirements, close capability gaps, or provide potential technological advances. CSO procedures are similar to those for Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs), with the exception that a CSO can be used to acquire innovative commercial items, technologies, or services that directly meet program requirements, whereas BAAs are restricted to basic and applied research.
Notwithstanding the limitation in DFARS 235.006-71, a CSO may also be used to fulfill requirements for R&D solutions ranging from advanced component development through operational systems development.
For CSO purposes, innovation is defined as any technology, process, or method, including research and development that is new as of the date of proposal submission or any application of a technology, process, or method that is new as of proposal submission.
The requirements of DFARS 215.371-2 do not apply to acquisition of innovative items, technologies, or services under a CSO.
Statutory (Non-FAR Based) Applications
CSO procedures are also used to award non-FAR based agreements. Specific limitations and requirements apply when using the CSO evaluation procedures and is dependent upon the non-FAR based strategy selected.
Common Applications
- Commercial products and services
- Information Technology (IT) product and services
- R&D studies for commercial technology
- Commercial Technology maturation
Pros |
Cons |
| Enables the rapid selection of innovative commercial solutions |
Data rights and licenses of commercial technology increases burden on government to ensure specialized rights are well understood within the context of the commercial product life cycle |
| Ability to use streamlined procedures for commercial technologies provides opportunity for acquisition programs to deliver capability quickly | |
| Shorter evaluation timelines for solution briefs significantly reduce procurement lead times |
Restrictions
- Limited to fixed-price or fixed-price incentive contract arrangements
- Awards exceeding $100 million require approval from USD A&S or military service acquisition executive
Resources
- 10 U.S.C. §3458 Authority to Acquire Innovative Commercial Products and Commercial Services using General Solicitation Competitive Procedures
- Class Deviation 2022-O0007 – Defense Commercial Solutions Opening, Defense Pricing and Contracting, Feb 2022
- 41 U.S.C. §3100, Pilot Programs for Authority To Acquire Innovative Commercial Items Using General Solicitation Competitive Procedures (GSA and DHS)
- Procurement Innovation Resource Center, General Services Administration
- Procurement Innovation Resource Center (PIRC) CSO Guide – General Services Administration, Jun 2018