TDS, Inc., B-292674, November 12, 2003

B-292674 Nov 12, 2003 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Is denied where record fails to show that firm will be in a position to evaluate the performance or activities of the prime contractor as part of its responsibilities under that other contract. 2. Discussions have occurred. 3. Equitable discussions is sustained where agency personnel. Two primary tasks were contemplated: help desk support services (essentially help desk services for agency end-users of computing and telecommunications resources). At 2-4. /1/ Firms were advised that quotations would be evaluated under six equally-weighted criteria: past performance. Firms were further advised that the agency would make award on a "best value" basis. Has an impermissible organizational conflict of interest (OCI) that should have precluded award to Northrop. View Decision TDS, Inc., B-292674, November 12, 2003 DIGEST Attorneys DECISION TDS, Inc. protests the issuance of a task order to Northrop Grumman Information Technology under request for quotations (RFQ) No. OJP-2003-Q-014, issued by the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs (OJP), to acquire help desk operation services. TDS maintains that one of Northrop's subcontractors has an impermissible organizational conflict of interest and that the agency misevaluated quotations and failed to engage in meaningful discussions. We sustain the protest. The RFQ contemplated the issuance of a task order under the successful firm's federal supply schedule (FSS) contract, for a 1-year base period with three 1-year options, to perform "help desk" operations services in support of the agency's information technology (IT) r equirements. Two primary tasks were contemplated: help desk support services (essentially help desk services for agency end-users of computing and telecommunications resources), and system administration and network engineering (the administration and management of all UNIX-based resources at the agency, and hardware and software engineering necessary to accomplish the agency's design goals for its computer network). RFQ, attachment No. 1, Statement of Objectives (SOO), at 2-4. /1/ Firms were advised that quotations would be evaluated under six equally-weighted criteria: past performance, corporate experience, technical understanding, quality control, professional staff and team, and management approach. RFQ at 2-4. The submissions would be assigned adjectival ratings of either exceptional, acceptable, marginal or unacceptable. Firms were further advised that the agency would make award on a "best value" basis, considering price and the non-price criteria, with the non-price considerations deemed more important than price. The agency received three timely quotations. After reviewing the submissions, the agency invited the firms to make oral presentations. In the course of the oral presentations, the agency posed questions to the vendors. Agency Report (AR), exh. 23. After concluding the oral presentations, the agency invited firms to submit final quotation revisions (FQR), advising them that they could submit technical revisions to their quotations in the areas mentioned by the agency during oral presentations, and also could submit revised pricing. The agency received FQRs from all three vendors. After evaluating the submissions, the agency assigned final adjectival ratings. Northrop's quotation received adjectival ratings of [deleted] under four of the six evaluation areas, and an [deleted] rating under the technical understanding and professional staff and team criteria; Northrop submitted a final price of [deleted]. TDS received [deleted] ratings under five of the evaluation criteria, and an [deleted] rating under the past performance criterion; it submitted a final price of [deleted]. /2/ On the basis of these evaluation results, the agency made award to Northrop as the firm submitting the quotation offering the best value to the government. ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST TDS asserts that one of Northrop's subcontractors, [deleted], has an impermissible organizational conflict of interest (OCI) that should have precluded award to Northrop. The record shows that [deleted] has another contract with OJP to provide various IT services to the agency (referred to in the record as the management system contract), and TDS maintains that [deleted] role under that contract, coupled with its responsibilities under the help desk contract, creates an "impaired objectivity" OCI. An impaired objectivity OCI exists where a firm's work under one government contract could entail its evaluating itself, either through an assessment of performance under another contract or an evaluation of a proposal submitted to obtain another contract. Aetna Gov't. Health Plans, Inc.; Foundation Health Fed. Servs., Inc., B-254397.15 et al., July 27, 1995, 95-2 CPD Para. 129 at 13.