Deployable Hospital Systems, Inc.--Reconsideration

B-260778.4 Jul 08, 1996 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Request for reconsideration of prior decision is denied where request either restates arguments raised earlier and disagrees with the original decision. The question was whether the contracting officer reasonably determined that TVI's sales of soft shelters alone and/or its sales of targets and decoys were sales of "similar items" for the purpose of this satisfying this criterion. Since the contracting officer's documented determination that TVI's recent sales involved "similar items" was supported by the record. DHS again contends that TVI's recent sales of soft shelters alone were not sales of "similar items" because these were but one element of the system. The committee stated that there was evidence that the firm had been unprofitable. View Decision Matter of: Deployable Hospital Systems, Inc.--Reconsideration File: B-260778.4 Date: July 8, 1996 Request for reconsideration of prior decision is denied where request either restates arguments raised earlier and disagrees with the original decision, or presents no new information warranting reversal. Attorneys DECISION Deployable Hospital Systems, Inc. (DHS) requests reconsideration of our decision in Deployable Hospital Sys., Inc., B-260778.2; B-260778.3, Feb. 12, 1996, 96-1 CPD para. 113, in which we denied its protests against the affirmation of the award of a contract to TVI Corporation under request for proposals (RFP) No. FA0021-95-R-0009, issued by the Department of the Air Force for deployable integrated mobile hospital tent systems. We deny the request for reconsideration. We sustained DHS' protest of the original award to TVI because the Air Force's failure to document its technical evaluation and its determination that TVI satisfied a definitive responsibility criterion compelled a conclusion that they lacked a reasonable basis. Deployable Hosp. Sys., Inc., B-260778, July 21, 1995, 95-2 CPD para. 65. We recommended that the Air Force reevaluate the proposals, adequately document the evaluation, and make a best value determination based upon the reevaluation results. Pursuant to that recommendation, the Air Force determined that TVI satisfied the solicitation's definitive responsibility criterion and its unrated general considerations, and rated TVI's proposal superior to DHS' acceptable under both technical evaluation factors. Based upon these findings and a consideration of the large difference between the offerors' prices, the Air Force affirmed its award to TVI. DHS' protest first challenged the agency's determination that TVI satisfied the definitive responsibility criterion, which required offerors to provide "a list of the three most recent sales of this or similar items/services . . . ." [1] This solicitation sought offers for soft shelters packed within a utilities trailer--a soft shelter system. As explained in our decision, since TVI had no recent sales of "this item"--a soft shelter system--the question was whether the contracting officer reasonably determined that TVI's sales of soft shelters alone and/or its sales of targets and decoys were sales of "similar items" for the purpose of this satisfying this criterion. As discussed in our decision, during the reevaluation, the contracting officer prepared detailed findings in which she answered this question in the affirmative. During the protest, DHS argued that a "similar item" must be comprised of all the elements of the system, in this case, the soft shelters and the utilities trailer. We concluded, however, that previous soft shelter sales would constitute evidence of sales of "this item"--a soft shelter system--and that DHS' proffered reading unreasonably eliminated the "similar item" provision from the criterion. Since the contracting officer's documented determination that TVI's recent sales involved "similar items" was supported by the record, we had no basis to find it unreasonable. See Restec Contractors, Inc., B-245862, Feb. 6, 1992, 92-1 CPD para. 154. In its request for reconsideration, DHS again contends that TVI's recent sales of soft shelters alone were not sales of "similar items" because these were but one element of the system. DHS' request consists largely of quotations from its prior filings. Our Bid Protest Regulations require that a party requesting reconsideration show that our prior decision contains either errors of fact or law or present information not previously considered that warrants reversal or modification of our decision. See 4 C.F.R. Sec. 21.12(a) (1995); R.E. Scherrer, Inc.--Recon., B-231101.3, Sept. 21, 1988, 88-2 CPD para. 274. DHS has not met this standard. [2] DHS' protest next challenged the agency's finding that TVI met the solicitation's general consideration with respect to financial capability.