Braswell Services Group, Inc., B-276694, July 15, 1997

B-276694 Jul 15, 1997 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights DIGEST Solicitation reasonably reflected the agency's minimum needs and provided sufficient information for offerors to intelligently prepare technical proposals and to submit prices which will take into account perceived performance uncertainties and risks. Fixed-price contract to the responsible offeror whose proposal was determined most advantageous to the government. The RFP stated that the "[p]ast performance factor is more important than the [p]rice factor.". An offeror's proposed price was to reflect its judgment regarding the staff-days and/or material required to perform the basic work under a particular work item. An offeror was also required to include in its proposed price an amount for additional staff-days and/or material reserved for work which was unknown prior to award. View Decision Matter of: Braswell Services Group, Inc. File: B-276694 Date: July 15, 1997 DIGEST Attorneys DECISION Braswell Services Group, Inc. protests the terms of request for proposals (RFP) No. N62670-97-R-0004, issued by the Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair, Department of the Navy, for repairs to the USS Philippine Sea, a guided missile cruiser. The protester basically contends that, as drafted, the RFP requirements involving staff-days for reserve work and specified personnel positions and the RFP evaluation scheme prevent it from intelligently preparing a proposal. We deny the protest. The RFP, issued on March 5, 1997, contemplated the award of a 3-month firm, fixed-price contract to the responsible offeror whose proposal was determined most advantageous to the government, past performance and price considered. Concerning the past performance evaluation factor, the RFP listed three subfactors--quality of product or service, timeliness of performance, and contracting/business relations. Each subfactor contained several elements, for a total of 18 elements. Concerning price, the RFP stated that an offeror's price would be evaluated for reasonableness and whether it reflected the offeror's understanding of the work and the firm's ability to perform the contract. In determining the proposal most advantageous to the government, the RFP stated that the "[p]ast performance factor is more important than the [p]rice factor." The protester, a firm experienced in performing ship repairs for the government, including work on the USS Philippine Sea under a previous contract, filed this protest prior to the closing time for receipt of proposals on April 8. Requirements for Staff-days for Reserve Work and Specified Personnel Positions The RFP specified more than 100 "work items" to be performed by the contractor. For most of these items, an offeror's proposed price was to reflect its judgment regarding the staff-days and/or material required to perform the basic work under a particular work item. For 34 of the work items, however, an offeror was also required to include in its proposed price an amount for additional staff-days and/or material reserved for work which was unknown prior to award, that is, initially unanticipated work which ultimately may be necessary to complete the work item. For the work items which included a reserve provision, the RFP provided a number of staff-days and a dollar amount for material. The RFP reserved a total of 1,122 staff-days and $104,975 for material. [1] The protester complains that it is unable to provide staffing information, as required by the RFP, for reserve work because the RFP includes insufficient detail concerning the reserve work, for example, the type of craft required and when the work will be needed. An agency is responsible for drafting proper specifications to meet the government's minimum needs. In preparing for a procurement, the agency must develop specifications in such a manner as is necessary to achieve full and open competition in accordance with the nature of the property or services to be acquired. See 10 U.S.C. Sec. 2305(a) (1994). A solicitation must contain sufficient information to allow offerors to compete intelligently and on an equal basis. Sunbelt Properties, Inc., B-249469 et al., Nov. 17, 1992, 92-2 CPD Para. 353 at 4. However, there is no legal requirement that a competition be based on specifications drafted in such detail as to completely eliminate all risk or remove every uncertainty from the mind of every prospective offeror. Id. Contrary to the protester's assertion, the RFP contains sufficient information to permit it to submit staffing charts for reserve work. Using the example noted above, it is clear that the reserve work covers the same services required for the basic work--crane and rigging services with operators and riggers loading, unloading, and transporting material, supplies, and equipment. To accomplish this reserve work the contractor will need a crane, fork lift, and storage container as required for the basic work.