Specialty Diving, Inc., B-285939, October 16, 2000

B-285939 Oct 16, 2000 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights DIGEST Agency decision to continue to procure underwater hull cleaning and surveying services as an integrated package is reasonable and legally unobjectionable where the agency determines that this approach . Is necessary in order to accurately assess a hull's underwater condition and to minimize the disruption to a vessel's ability to be deployed. The offeror is to specifically identify its location. Whether the facility is currently owned by the offeror. Clearly identifying the number of days after contract award when the facility will become available for purchase or lease to the offeror. So that all responsible sources are permitted to compete. 10 U.S.C. The determination of a contracting agency's needs and the best method for accommodating them are matters primarily within the agency's discretion. View Decision Matter of: Specialty Diving, Inc. File: B-285939 Date: October 16, 2000 DIGEST Attorneys DECISION Specialty Diving, Inc. (SDI) protests the terms of request for proposals (RFP) No. N00024-00-R-4091, issued by the Department of the Navy for worldwide hull cleaning and related services, including underwater hull surveys, of Navy, Coast Guard, Army, and Military Sealift Command ships and craft. We deny the protest. The RFP, issued on an unrestricted basis on May 18, 2000, contemplates the award of an indefinite-quantity, fixed-priced contract for the base period and four 1-year option periods. /1/ RFP at 32, 84. As relevant here, the RFP defines an underwater hull survey as follows: a quantitative inspection and digital record of the condition of a vessel[']s underwater hull and appendages. The survey shall consist[] of a series of measurements of the hull plate thickness, hull coating thickness, and hull electro-potential. A minimum of one measurement per square foot of wetted surface area surveyed shall be taken for each of the data categories. Data readings shall be evenly distributed across the surveyed surface and each reading shall be correlated to its relative hull position [with an accuracy no less than 6--inches]. The survey shall also include video of the surveyed surfaces and digital still images of all damage discovered. Id. at 8, 19. Item No. 0001 in the RFP describes the requirements for full hull cleaning (i.e., the removal of all marine fouling from the entire underwater hull and appendages). Id. at 12. Item No. 0014 describes the requirements for an underwater hull survey, in accordance with the above-quoted definition. Id. at 18-19. In addition, the RFP requires an offeror to describe its proposed operations facilities for the performance of hull cleaning and related services, such as hull surveys, in Zones A and B, as appropriate. For each facility proposed, the offeror is to specifically identify its location, size, and capabilities, and whether the facility is currently owned by the offeror. If the offeror intends to obtain a facility after contract award, the RFP requires the offeror to provide a letter of commitment from the facility source, clearly identifying the number of days after contract award when the facility will become available for purchase or lease to the offeror. Id. at 95-96. /2/ The RFP includes a sample letter of commitment for facilities. Id., attach. 5. SDI filed this protest on July 27. Four firms, including SDI, submitted proposals by the closing time on August 9. SDI objects to the agency's decision to procure underwater hull surveying services in conjunction with underwater hull cleaning services. While noting that the agency has historically procured these services together, SDI contends that the agency should now satisfy its needs by separately procuring each of these services. /3/ The Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 requires that agencies specify their needs and solicit offers in a manner designed to achieve full and open competition, so that all responsible sources are permitted to compete. 10 U.S.C. Sec. 2305(a)(1)(A)(i) (1994). The determination of a contracting agency's needs and the best method for accommodating them are matters primarily within the agency's discretion. Northrop Grumman Corp., B-285386, Aug. 1, 2000, 2000 CPD Para. 38 at 4. For over 16 years, the agency has contracted for underwater hull cleaning and surveying services by conducting a single procurement for these services, including the last procurement for which a contract was awarded in 1995. Agency Report (AR) at 8. The agency explains that underwater hull cleaning and surveying services must be performed in close succession. AR at 9. More specifically, the agency requires the underwater portions of a hull to be cleaned shortly before a survey is performed so that these areas are free of marine slime, grasses, and barnacles which, if present, would preclude an accurate assessment of the hull's underwater condition. Id.