Sygnetics, Inc.

B-414649 Aug 02, 2017 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Sygnetics, Inc., of Auburn Hills, Michigan, protests the rejection of the offer it submitted in response to request for proposals (RFP) No. W15QKN-16-R-0003, issued by the Department of the Army, U.S. Army Materiel Command, for recruiting, management, and administrative support services. Sygnetics asserts that the agency unreasonably determined that Sygnetics failed to provide a required licensing agreement with its proposal. 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:  Sygnetics, Inc. File:  B-414649 Date:  August 2, 2017 Daniel McAuliffe, Esq., Whitcomb, Selinsky, McAuliffe, PC, for the protester. CPT Matthew Wilson, and Annemarie Drazenovich, Esq., Department of the  Army, for the agency. Mary G. Curcio, Esq., and Laura Eyester, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest that agency improperly rejected protester’s proposal is denied where protester failed to submit, with its proposal, an end user license agreement, as required by the solicitation.  DECISION Sygnetics, Inc., of Auburn Hills, Michigan, protests the rejection of the offer it submitted in response to request for proposals (RFP) No. W15QKN-16-R-0003, issued by the Department of the Army, U.S. Army Materiel Command, for recruiting, management, and administrative support services.  Sygnetics asserts that the agency unreasonably determined that Sygnetics failed to provide a required licensing agreement with its proposal.  We deny the protest. BACKGROUND The solicitation, issued as a small business set-aside, contemplated the award of multiple indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts to provide recruiting, management, and administrative services support.  The solicitation provided for award on a best-value basis, considering technical, price, and past performance factors.  RFP, § M, at 1.  As relevant to this protest, offerors were required to address a soldier benefits services sample task for which it was necessary to use certain calculators (e.g., a survivor benefits and a retirement calculator) that would be licensed from a directed source‑‑the Armed Forces Services Corporation (AFSC).  RFP, amend. 3, at 2.  The solicitation stated that “the Offeror shall submit two copies of their End User License Agreement (EULA) with [AFSC].”  Id., amend. 4, § L, at 20.  The solicitation also included a table that listed the proposal submission requirements, which for the soldier benefits services sample task specifically listed the requirement for offerors to submit two copies of a EULA with AFSC.  Id. amend. 4, at 5, n.4.  In addition, the performance work statement (PWS) for the soldier benefits sample task provided that the contractor “shall” license the calculators from AFSC, the cost of which would be reimbursed; the PWS also set forth points of contact for the AFSC.  Id., amend. 4, PWS, at 25.  The solicitation advised offerors that failure to comply with any requirement of the solicitation could result in the offeror’s proposal being rejected as non-compliant.  Id., amend. 4, § L, at 7.  Sygnetics submitted an offer by the March 1 closing date for the receipt of proposals.  The contracting officer reviewed the proposals received to ensure that all required information was submitted.  Request for Dismissal at 4.  Sygnetics’ proposal was rejected because Sygnetics did not provide the license agreement.  Id.  Sygnetics protests that decision.  DISCUSSION Sygnetics protests that the requirement to provide the end user license agreement from AFSC is ambiguous and unjustified, and argues that the agency unreasonably rejected its offer.  In this regard, Sygnetics notes that while the solicitation requires the offeror to submit the license agreement, the PWS for the soldier benefits services sample task requires the contractor to license the calculators.