Westinghouse Government and Environmental Services Company,

Westinghouse Government and Environmental Services Company, BNUMBER: B-280928; B-280928.2; B-280929; B-280929.2 DATE: December 4, 1998 TITLE: Westinghouse Government and Environmental Services Company, Inc., B-280928; B-280928.2; B-280929; B-280929.2, December 4, 1998 ********************************************************************** DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE The decision issued on the date below was subject to a GAO Protective Order. This redacted version has been approved for public release. Matter of: Westinghouse Government and Environmental Services Company, Inc. File: B-280928; B-280928.2; B-280929; B-280929.2 Date: December 4, 1998 Stanley R. Soya, Esq., Richard J. Vacura, Esq., and Sheila C. Stark, Esq., Piper & Marbury, and Hopewell H. Darneille III, Esq., Verner, Liipfert, Bernhard, McPherson and Hand, for the protester. Harvey G. Sherzer, Esq., Jeffrey N. Eisenstein, Esq., Lee P. Curtis, Esq., Scott Arnold, Esq., and Douglas S. Manya, Esq., Howrey & Simon, for Bechtel National, Inc., the intervenor. Gena E. Cadieux, Esq., James S. Carey, Jr., Esq., and Patricia D. Graham, Esq., Department of Energy; and Rebecca K. Cressy, Esq., Robert D. Hogue, Esq., William A. Longwell, Esq., Michael J. Glennon, Esq., John M. Davis, Esq., and Kelly K. Swartz, Esq., Department of the Navy, for the agencies. Adam Vodraska, Esq., John L. Formica, Esq., and James A. Spangenberg, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1. Protest that the contracting agencies unreasonably evaluated the protester's and awardee's competing proposals is denied where the record demonstrates that the evaluation was reasonable. 2. Award to the offeror submitting the higher priced, technically superior proposal in response to a solicitation which provided that technical merit was more important than price is unobjectionable where the contracting agencies reasonably determined that the awardee's superior technical proposal was worth the additional cost. DECISION Westinghouse Government and Environmental Services Company, Inc. (GESCO) protests the award of contracts to Bechtel National, Inc. (BNI) by the Pittsburgh Naval Reactors Office, Department of Energy (DOE), and the Naval Sea Systems Command, Department of the Navy, under request for proposals (RFP) Nos. DE-RP11-98PN38001 and N00024-98-R-4064, respectively, a joint procurement for the management and operation of the Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, and for design, development, improvement, and maintenance of naval nuclear propulsion plants. We deny the protests. Bettis is a government-owned, contractor-operated research and development facility dedicated to the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program (also known as the Naval Reactors (NR) Program), a joint program of DOE and the Navy. Report at 2.[1] The NR Program performs activities of crucial importance to national security by ensuring the safe and effective use of nuclear propulsion on board the Navy's nuclear-powered warships and submarines. Id. These ships constitute a large portion of the Navy's combat fleet and call on numerous ports throughout the world; the submarines currently deploy more than half of the nation's strategic nuclear weapons. Id. The successful offeror under the RFPs will be required to manage and operate Bettis in support of the NR Program. The work includes the design, development, and testing of high-power, long-life reactor plants for Navy ships and submarines; the maintenance, operation and modification of the Navy's Expended Core Facility; reactor design and evaluation studies of new and improved methods of nuclear propulsion; and maintenance and operation of the various test facilities at the Bettis site. DOE RFP (Tab 2) sec. C at 1-3. The offeror will also be required to perform research and development to ensure continued safe and reliable nuclear propulsion, the modification and upgrading of existing nuclear propulsion plant components, nuclear plant operator training, nuclear plant operation and servicing engineering, nuclear plant planning yard engineering, refueling overhaul, and delivery of any reports or technical data requested or required by the government. Navy RFP (Tab 1) at 2-3, 8-10. The RFPs contemplated the award of two cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts (one DOE, one Navy) to a single offeror for a 5-year base period with one 5-year option.[2] Report at 3; Navy RFP (Tab 1) at 4-5, 26-27; DOE RFP (Tab 2) sec. B at 1, F.