Strategic Management Solutions, LLC

B-416598.3,B-416598.4 Dec 17, 2019 Jump To FULL REPORT VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Strategic Management Solutions, LLC (SMSI), of Albuquerque, New Mexico, protests the award of a contract to Enterprise Technical Assistance Services, Inc. (E-TAS), of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, under request for proposals (RFP) No. DE-SOL-0010125, issued by the Department of Energy (DOE) for technical support services (TSS) for DOE's Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office (PPPO). SMSI argues the agency's evaluation of offerors' proposals and resulting award decision were improper. We dismiss the protest in part and deny the protest in part. 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:  Strategic Management Solutions, LLC File:  B-416598.3; B-416598.4 Date:  December 17, 2019 Kenneth B. Weckstein, Esq., Tammy Hopkins, Esq., and Andrew C. Crawford, Esq., Brown Rudnick LLP, for the protester. J. Hunter Bennett, Esq., Jason A. Carey, Esq., and Andrew R. Guy, Esq., Covington & Burling, LLP, for Enterprise Technical Assistance Services, Inc., the intervenor. Jared D. Minsk, Esq., Harry J. Shearer, Esq., and Rachna M. Talwar, Esq., Department of Energy, for the agency. Louis A. Chiarella, Esq., and Peter H. Tran, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1.  Protest that agency failed to give adequate consideration to awardee’s potential organizational conflict of interest (OCI) is denied where the agency reasonably evaluated whether the awardee had an impaired objectivity OCI and where the protester’s assertions fail to present hard facts indicating the existence of a conflict. 2.  Protest alleging the agency failed to reasonably evaluate the performance risk associated with awardee’s price is denied where the protester’s allegation is based on an unreasonable interpretation of the solicitation. 3.  Protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of awardee’s past performance is dismissed where protester failed to timely challenge a patent ambiguity in the solicitation. 4.  Protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of offerors’ key personnel is denied where the evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the stated evaluation criteria, and not disparate. DECISION Strategic Management Solutions, LLC (SMSI), of Albuquerque, New Mexico, protests the award of a contract to Enterprise Technical Assistance Services, Inc. (E-TAS), of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, under request for proposals (RFP) No. DE-SOL-0010125, issued by the Department of Energy (DOE) for technical support services (TSS) for DOE’s Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office (PPPO).  SMSI argues the agency’s evaluation of offerors’ proposals and resulting award decision were improper. We dismiss the protest in part and deny the protest in part. BACKGROUND The DOE PPPO is responsible for conducting “the safe, secure, compliant, and cost effective environmental legacy cleanup” of the Portsmouth and Paducah Uranium Enrichment Sites.  Agency Report (AR), Tab A, RFP, Performance Work Statement (PWS) § C.1.  To accomplish its responsibilities, PPPO developed the PWS here to obtain technical and administrative support in furtherance of DOE’s oversight and management of the clean-up activities at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (GDP), Pike County, Ohio, and the Paducah GDP, Paducah, Kentucky; the operation of the Depleted Uranium Hexafluoride (DUF6) Conversion Project, Pike County, Ohio, and Paducah, Kentucky; and for various technical engineering functions and general administrative support.[1]  PWS § C.1; COS/MOL at 3. The RFP was issued on July 3, 2017, as a small business set-aside, pursuant to the procedures of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 15.[2]  The solicitation contemplated the award of a time-and-materials contract for a 3-year base period with a 2-year option.[3]  RFP § B.2.  In general terms, the contractor was to provide qualified personnel to successfully perform the PWS requirements in all specified areas.  PWS § C.1.2.  The RFP established that contract award would be made on a best-value tradeoff basis, based on five evaluation factors in descending order of importance:  (1) technical and management approach (technical approach); (2) key personnel and organizational structure (key personnel); (3) relevant experience (experience); (4) relevant past performance (past performance); and (5) price.  RFP §§ M.7, M.8.  The non-price factors, when combined, were significantly more important than price.  RFP § M.7. With respect to price, the RFP provided offerors with the specific labor categories and labor hours for each contract performance period.  RFP § B.2.  The RFP also specified the minimum qualifications for each labor category.  RFP attach.