Trident Maintenance Inc.

B-275891 Mar 12, 1997 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Trident contends that under a proper bid price calculation its bid is lower priced than Alaska Lee's. Building information was provided that informed bidders of. Bidders were informed by section M that the agency would use the following formula to evaluate bid prices: [1] Basic Services: Monthly price X 12 $________ "(Note: The square footages are divided by l000. That result will be multiplied by an estimate of the number of times the service might be used. The same will hold true for Blind and Window Washing.)" Other Contract Services: Floor Maintenance Services (Office) Stripping & Refinishing: ______/1000 SF X 2. Alaska's Lee's bid price of .06 per SF for stripping and refinishing office floors was converted to $60 per 1. View Decision Matter of: Trident Maintenance Inc. File: B-275891 Date: March 12, 1997 DIGEST Attorneys DECISION Trident Maintenance Inc. protests the award of a contract to Alaska Lee's Inc. under invitation for bids (IFB) No. GS-05P-96-GAC-0274, issued by the General Services Administration (GSA) for janitorial and related services at the Charles A. Halleck Federal Building in Lafayette, Indiana. Trident contends that under a proper bid price calculation its bid is lower priced than Alaska Lee's. We sustain the protest. The IFB provided for the award of a contract for janitorial and related services for a base and 4 option years. Building information was provided that informed bidders of, among other things, the building's gross area (51,681 square feet (SF)), occupiable area (24,324 SF), bare office flooring (2,258 SF), and carpeted office area (11,679 SF). The solicitation's schedule of supplies or services and prices requested that bidders provide their price per month for the base and option years to perform the "basic services" and to also provide their prices for various quantities (per 1,000 SF) for some services, and per job, per blind, and per hour for other services) of specified "other contract services." Bidders were informed by section M that the agency would use the following formula to evaluate bid prices: [1] Basic Services: Monthly price X 12 $________ "(Note: The square footages are divided by l000. That result will be multiplied by an estimate of the number of times the service might be used. The same will hold true for Blind and Window Washing.)" Other Contract Services: Floor Maintenance Services (Office) Stripping & Refinishing: ______/1000 SF X 2,258 SF $______ Stripping & Sealing: ______/1000 SF X 2,258 SF $______ Carpet Cleaning: ______/1000 SF X 11,679 SF $______ Floor Maintenance Services (Corridors) Stripping & Refinishing: ______/1000 SF X 5,327 SF $______ Stripping & Sealing: ______/1000 SF X 5,327 SF $______ Carpet Cleaning: ______/1000 SF X 83 SF $______ Scrub and rinse loading docks, platforms, trash rooms, garage ramps, and driveways: ______/1000 SF X 630 SF $______ High Cleaning: ______/1000 SF X 0 SF $______ Wash Blinds: ______/Blind X 253 Blinds $______ Window Washing: ______/Job X 1 Job $______ Snow Removal: ______/Hour X 0 Hours $______ GSA received six bids by the bid opening date. Trident's and Alaska Lee's provided the following bid prices: [2] Trident Alaska Lee's Basic Services: Total Price (base and option years): $186,431 $179,400 Other Contract Services: (base and option years) Floor Maintenance Services (Offices) Stripping & Refinishing $70 .06 SF Stripping & Sealing $70 .06 SF Carpet Cleaning $55 .06 SF Floor Maintenance Services (Corridors) Stripping & Refinishing $70 .06 SF Stripping & Sealing $70 .05 SF Carpet Cleaning $55 .06 SF Scrub and rinse loading docks, etc. $50 .04 F High Cleaning $60 .02 SF Wash Blinds $3 $19 Window Washing $225 $650 Snow Removal $40 $70 In evaluating bid prices, GSA converted Alaska Lee's price per SF to a price per 1,000 SF; for example, Alaska's Lee's bid price of .06 per SF for stripping and refinishing office floors was converted to $60 per 1,000 SF. GSA then multiplied Trident's and Alaska Lee's bid prices per 1,000 SF for the various floor maintenance services, scrubbing and rinsing of loading docks, and high clearing line items against the solicitation's stated estimated quantities. Using this calculation, GSA determined that Alaska Lee's had submitted the lowest total bid price of $8,145,935 and that Trident had submitted the second lowest total bid price of $8,892,890. Award was made to Alaska Lee's, and this protest followed. Performance has been stayed pending our decision in this matter. Trident contends that GSA misapplied the IFB evaluation formula in calculating the bidders' total bid prices. Specifically, Trident complains that GSA treated Trident's and Alaska Lee's prices per 1,000 SF for the floor maintenance services, scrubbing and rinsing of loading docks, and high clearing line items as prices per SF, which skewed the calculation of the total bid prices.