12.202 Market research and description of agency need.

(a) Market research (see 10.001) is an essential element of building an effective strategy for the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services and establishes the foundation for the agency description of need (see part  11), the solicitation, and resulting contract.

(b) The description of agency need must contain sufficient detail for potential offerors of commercial products or commercial services to know which commercial products or commercial services may be suitable. Generally, for acquisitions in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold, an agency’s statement of need for a commercial product or commercial service will describe the type of commercial product or commercial service to be acquired and explain how the agency intends to use the product or service in terms of function to be performed, performance requirement or essential physical characteristics. Describing the agency’s needs in these terms allows offerors to propose methods that will best meet the needs of the Government.

(c) Follow the procedures in subpart  11.2 regarding the identification and availability of specifications, standards and commercial item descriptions.

(d) Requirements documents shall identify the applicable information and communication technology accessibility standards at 36 CFR 1194.1 (see 11.002(f) and subpart  39.2).

(e) When acquiring information technology using Internet Protocol, agencies must include the appropriate Internet Protocol compliance requirements in accordance with 11.002(g).