Brickwood Contractors, Inc., B-292171, June 3, 2003

B-292171 Jun 03, 2003 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights DIGEST Agency reasonably concluded it had a compelling reason to cancel invitation for bids after bid opening where the solicitation's language was ambiguous concerning certain certification requirements associated with the application and removal of paint from the steel structures of a bridge. The principal purpose of this solicitation was to obtain the services of a firm to clean and paint all of the bridge's exposed steel surfaces. Two of the solicitation's line items were for "surface preparation and painting. I. Among the IFB's Special Contract Requirements were two provisions associated with certification requirements established by the Society for Protective Coatings. Brickwood was the apparent low bidder with a price of $834. View Decision Brickwood Contractors, Inc., B-292171, June 3, 2003 DIGEST Attorneys DECISION Brickwood Contractors, Inc. protests as improper the cancellation of invitation for bids (IFB) No. DTFH71-03-B-00019, issued by the Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), for cleaning and painting the structural steel of a bridge on the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Arlington County, Virginia. We deny the protest. The principal purpose of this solicitation was to obtain the services of a firm to clean and paint all of the bridge's exposed steel surfaces. In addition to the tasks of surface preparation and painting, the work included the containment and collection of surface preparation debris, the disposal of surface preparation debris, and a worker health protection program. Accordingly, two of the solicitation's line items were for "surface preparation and painting, steel structure" and "containment system and worker protection plan." Bid Schedule at 4. The solicitation included the clause at Federal Acquisition Regulation Sec. 52.236-1, "Performance of Work by the Contractor," which requires the contractor to perform on the site, and with its own organization, at least 50 percent of the total amount of work to be performed under the contract. IFB Sec. I. Among the IFB's Special Contract Requirements were two provisions associated with certification requirements established by the Society for Protective Coatings, formerly known as the Steel Structures Painting Council (SSPC). The SSPC, a non-profit professional society concerned with the use of coatings to protect industrial steel structures, administers a nationally recognized independent contractor certification program that serves as a pre-qualification tool for facility owners and others who hire industrial painting contractors. See SSPC Internet Site at . Among other things, the program includes the "QP 1" category, which evaluates contractors who perform surface preparation and industrial coating application on steel structures in the field, and the "QP 2" category, a supplement to the QP 1 category, which evaluates the contractor's ability to perform industrial hazardous paint removal in a field operation. Id. at . IFB Special Contract Requirements section 563.05 stated: SSPC Painting Contractor Certification Program (PCCP) Requirements. All contractors and subcontractors that perform surface preparation shall be certified by the [SSPC] to the requirements of SSPC-QP 1 prior to the contract award, and shall remain certified while accomplishing any surface preparation. All contractors and subcontractors that perform paint removal containing lead or other hazardous materials shall be certified by the [SSPC] to the requirements of SSPC-QP 2 prior to the contract award, and shall remain certified while accomplishing any paint removal. The painting contractors and painting subcontractors must remain certified for the respective work for the duration of the project. IFB Special Contract Requirements section 563.06 stated: SSPC Painting Contractor Certification Program (PCCP) Requirements. All contractors and subcontractors that perform paint application shall be certified by the [SSPC] to the requirements of SSPC-QP 1 prior to the contract award, and shall remain certified while accomplishing any paint application. The painting contractors and painting subcontractors must remain certified for the respective work for the duration of the project. Brickwood was the apparent low bidder with a price of $834,110. The apparent second-low bidder filed an agency-level protest arguing that Brickwood was not an SSPC-certified firm, and the FHWA asked Brickwood to provide the required certification. The certifications Brickwood provided were for not for the firm itself but, instead, for its subcontractor.