CVB Company, B-278478.4, September 21, 1998

B-278478.4 Sep 21, 1998 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Protest of agency's evaluation of proposals is denied where record shows that evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the stated evaluation factors. 2. Lower-priced proposal in a best value procurement (where solicitation stated that technical merit was significantly more important than price) is proper where the source selection authority performed a rational integrated assessment of the proposals and reasonably determined that the price premium involved in an award to the protester on the basis of its higher-rated. Higher-priced proposal was not justified given the favorable level of technical competence available at the lower price. CVB principally contends that the evaluation of proposals and source selection decision were unreasonable and inconsistent with the stated evaluation factors for award. View Decision Matter of: CVB Company File: B-278478.4 Date: September 21, 1998 * Redacted Decision DIGEST Attorneys DECISION CVB Company, a joint venture of CV International, Inc. and Bauer Compressors, Inc., protests the proposed award of a contract to Pacific Consolidated Industries (PCI) under request for proposals (RFP) No. F41608-97-R-20209, issued by the Department of the Air Force for self-generating nitrogen service carts (SGNSC). CVB principally contends that the evaluation of proposals and source selection decision were unreasonable and inconsistent with the stated evaluation factors for award. We deny the protest. The RFP, set aside for small business concerns, contemplated the award of a fixed-price requirements contract for a 2-year base period, with a 3-year option period, for an estimated quantity of 1,420 SGNSCs. RFP Sec. B, Sec. L-65C, and Amendment No. 8. The required SGNSC is a diesel engine-powered, self-contained, towable unit capable of producing high-purity nitrogen gas from ambient air using air separation membrane technology; the carts are to be used in servicing military aircraft (e.g., in the service of tires, struts, accumulators, and external receivers) in all operating environments. The RFP, Sec. M-902, provided for award on the basis of the proposal that "provides the best overall value to satisfy Air Force needs." In this regard, section M-900.A.1 provided that the agency would award a contract under the solicitation "to the responsible offeror whose offer, conforming to the solicitation, has the highest degree of credibility and whose performance can best meet the Government's requirements at an affordable cost." /1/ The RFP, Sec. M-900.A.1, stated that award would be based on an integrated assessment of the results of the evaluations of the technical and price proposals, proposal and performance risk, and general considerations. /2/ The technical proposals were to be evaluated under the following factors (and subfactors), listed in descending order of importance: design (including unit design, reliability/maintainability, and first article test plan); and production (including facilities, quality programs, and production plan). RFP Sec. M-900.B.1. Offerors were advised that "to allow innovation and encourage superior design, evaluators may reward proposals which improve upon the requirements of the purchase description, with emphasis on mean time between failure, unit dimensions, weight, and operating time before refueling." Id. Proposed prices were to be evaluated for realism and reasonableness. RFP Sec. M-900.B.2. Section M-900.A.3 of the RFP specified as follows regarding the respective weights of the evaluation factors in the overall evaluation scheme: The Technical Area is significantly more important than cost or price, with cost or price and general considerations receiving equal consideration. The Technical Area will receive a color rating and a performance risk rating, and the technical factors will receive color ratings and proposal risk ratings. /3/ Each of the ratings shall be given equal consideration in making an integrated source selection decision. /4/ Eight firms submitted proposals by the closing time for receipt of initial proposals on June 30, 1997. Discussions were then conducted, through the issuance of clarification and deficiency reports, with the six offerors that submitted proposals determined to be within the competitive range for award, including CVB and PCI. Initial best and final offers (BAFO) were received on November 3, and second BAFOs, submitted in response to certain amended solicitation terms, including a reduction in the stated estimated quantity, were received on February 18, 1998. The source selection evaluation team (SSET) assigned a [deleted] color rating to CVB's proposal for the "technical area" (reflecting the [deleted] color rating received under the more important "design" technical evaluation factor, and the [deleted] color rating received under the less important "production" technical evaluation factor).