Gorod Shtor

B-411284 May 22, 2015 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Gorod Shtor, of Moscow, Russia, protests the award of a contract to OOO Premier Design, of Moscow, Russia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. SRS500-15-Q-0002, issued by the Department of State for drapery making and installation services at the U.S. Embassy Moscow. Gorod Shtor argues that the agency's evaluation of vendors' quotations was unreasonable, and that the resulting award decision was improper. We dismiss the protest. We dismiss the protest. View Decision Decision Matter of: Gorod Shtor File: B-411284 Date: May 22, 2015 Olga Bajina for the protester. Dennis J. Gallagher, Esq., Department of State, for the agency. Louis A. Chiarella, Esq., and Nora K. Adkins, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest issue raised subsequent to a post-award debriefing provided to a vendor in a simplified acquisition procurement for a commercial item is untimely where it was filed more than 10 days after the basis of protest was known; since the procurement was not one involving a required debriefing, the timeliness rules based on protests which challenge a procurement involving a required debriefing are not applicable. DECISION Gorod Shtor, of Moscow, Russia, protests the award of a contract to OOO Premier Design, of Moscow, Russia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. SRS500-15-Q-0002, issued by the Department of State for drapery making and installation services at the U.S. Embassy Moscow. Gorod Shtor argues that the agency’s evaluation of vendors’ quotations was unreasonable, and that the resulting award decision was improper. We dismiss the protest. The RFQ was issued on November 24, 2014, under the commercial item acquisition and simplified acquisition procedures of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) part 12 and subpart 13.5. The solicitation contemplated the award of an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) contract to provide the U.S. Embassy Moscow with drapery making and installation services, to include materials, for a base year together with four 1-year options. The solicitation included a work statement, estimated quantities of items for each performance period, instructions to vendors regarding the submission of quotations, and evaluation criteria.[1] Award was to be made on a lowest-priced, technically-acceptable basis. RFQ at 37. Gorod Shtor and OOO Premier Design were among the vendors that submitted quotations by the January 12, 2015, closing date. On March 10, after finding it to be the lowest-priced, technically-acceptable vendor, the agency made award to OOO Premier Design. Protest, attach. 3, Award Notice, Mar. 10, 2015, at 1. Gorod Shtor’s quotation, by contrast, was found to be both higher priced and technically unacceptable. Id. Gorod Shtor received the agency’s award notice on March 10. This notice informed the protester of the awardee’s name and total contract price, and advised that Gorod Shtor’s quotation contained weaknesses in the area of labor and financial resources. Id. The notice also informed the protester that, “[i]f you desire a debriefing, please refer to FAR provision 52.212-1(l).” Id. Gorod Shtor requested a debriefing on March 13, which the agency provided in writing on March 17. Id., attach. 4, Debriefing, Mar. 17, 2015. The debriefing informed Gorod Shtor of the reasons why the agency had found the vendor to be technically unacceptable. Id. Gorod Shtor then filed its protest with our Office on March 27. Gorod Shtor challenges the agency’s evaluation of OOO Premier Design’s technically acceptability. The protester alleges that the awardee does not operate an established business with a permanent address and telephone listing as required by the solicitation.[2] Protest at 1. Gorod Shtor also argues that the agency’s evaluation of the protester’s technical quotation was unreasonable. Id. at 1-2. As detailed below, we find Gorod Shtor’s protest of the technical acceptability of OOO Premier Design to be untimely and, in light thereof, find the protester’s challenge to the agency’s evaluation of its own quotation to be without prejudice. The jurisdiction of our Office is established by the bid protest provisions of the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3551-3556. Our role in resolving bid protests is to ensure that the statutory requirements for full and open competition are met. Pacific Photocopy & Research Servs., B-278698, B-278698.3, Mar. 4, 1998, 98-1 CPD ¶ 69 at 4. Our Bid Protest Regulations contain strict rules for the timely submission of protests. These timeliness rules reflect the dual requirements of giving parties a fair opportunity to present their cases and resolving protests expeditiously without disrupting or delaying the procurement process. The MIL Corp., B-297508, B-297508.2, Jan.