Noblis Inc.

B-414055 Feb 01, 2017 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Noblis, Inc., of Falls Church, Virginia, protests the award of a contract to Vencore, Inc., of Chantilly, Virginia, by the General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Acquisition Service, on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), pursuant to request for proposals (RFP) No. ID01150067 for systems engineering and technical support services supporting the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS). The protester challenges multiple aspects of the agency's evaluation and source selection decision. We deny the protest. We deny the protest. View Decision 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. Decision Matter of:  Noblis, Inc. File:  B-414055 Date:  February 1, 2017 J. Scott Hommer, III, Esq., Keir X. Bancroft, Esq., Miranda S. Riemer, Esq., and Michael T. Francel, Esq., Venable LLP, for the protester. Peter J. Eyre, Esq., Mark A. Ries, Esq., and Robert Sneckenberg, Esq., Crowell & Moring LLP, for Vencore, Inc., the intervenor. Meaghan Q. LeClerc, Esq., General Services Administration, for the agency. Nora K. Adkins, Esq., and Amy B. Pereira, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1.  Protester was not misled or treated unequally by the agency where all offerors were provided the same information and were permitted to structure their proposals to best address the solicitation requirements based on their own business judgment. 2.  Protest challenging the agency’s cost realism calculations and methodology is denied where the agency’s use of the standard deviation methodology was reasonable and any errors in the agency’s calculation of the standard deviation did not prejudice the protester. 3.  Protest challenging the agency’s assessment of performance risk is denied where the solicitation advised all offerors that the results of the cost realism analysis could be used by the source selection authority to assess performance risk and the agency reasonably assessed performance risk based upon the agency’s concern about the protester’s low labor rates in a highly competitive labor market. 4.  Protest challenging the agency’s best-value tradeoff decision is denied where the agency’s decision was reasonable and in accordance with the solicitation’s criteria. DECISION Noblis, Inc., of Falls Church, Virginia, protests the award of a contract to Vencore, Inc., of Chantilly, Virginia, by the General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Acquisition Service, on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), pursuant to request for proposals (RFP) No. ID01150067 for systems engineering and technical support services supporting the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS).  The protester challenges multiple aspects of the agency’s evaluation and source selection decision. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND The NESDIS is responsible for the implementation of new flight and ground systems and the modification of existing systems needed to operate environmental satellites, and to collect, process, distribute, and archive satellite data for the nation’s civilian environmental satellite (spacecraft and sensor) program.  RFP, Statement of Work (SOW), at 5.  The systems include computers, communications, radio frequency equipment, and the associated hardware and software.  Id.  The NESDIS is also responsible for performing similar work on cooperative missions with other United States government agencies, foreign governments, and organizations.  Id.  The NESDIS is responsible for the information technology architecture and security of all computer systems processing environmental data and supporting both operational and administrative functions of the systems.  Id. On April 26, 2016, GSA issued the solicitation pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 15 procedures to acquire system engineering and technical support services in support of the NESDIS for a 1-year base period and four 1-year options.  Id. at 3, 8.  The RFP anticipated the award of a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract on a best-value tradeoff basis based on five evaluation factors:  corporate capability; key personnel qualifications; management capability; past performance; and cost.  Id. at 45, 53, 56.  The solicitation provided that the non‑cost evaluation factors, which were listed in descending order of importance, when combined, were more important but not significantly more important than cost.  Id.