C&T Technologies (12314420R0002)

B-418313 Mar 02, 2020 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights C&T Technologies, a small business of Washington, District of Columbia, protests the issuance of a task order to Ideation Solutions JV, LLC, a small business of Fairfax, Virginia, under request for proposals (RFP) No. 12314420R0002, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for information technology (IT) end user support services. C&T argues that the agency's evaluation of Ideation's price proposal was flawed. 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:  C&T Technologies File:  B-418313 Date:  March 2, 2020 Megan M. Jeschke, Esq., and Kelsey M. Hayes, Esq., Holland & Knight LLP, for the protester. Alfred M. Wurglitz, Esq., C. Peter Dungan, Esq., and Christopher S. Denny, Esq., Miles & Stockbridge PC, for Ideation Solutions JV, LLC, the intervenor. Elin M. Dugan, Esq., Department of Agriculture, for the agency. Robert T. Wu, Esq., and Peter H. Tran, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest that the agency failed to properly evaluate the awardee’s price proposal in accordance with the terms of the solicitation is denied where the record shows that the evaluation was reasonable and in accordance with the stated evaluation criteria. DECISION   C&T Technologies, a small business of Washington, District of Columbia, protests the issuance of a task order to Ideation Solutions JV, LLC, a small business of Fairfax, Virginia, under request for proposals (RFP) No. 12314420R0002, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for information technology (IT) end user support services.  C&T argues that the agency’s evaluation of Ideation’s price proposal was flawed. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND The RFP, issued on September 27, 2019, pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 16.5, sought proposals from participants in the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program who are holders of the National Institute of Health’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) Solution and Partners Version 3 Small Business governmentwide acquisition contract.  Agency Report (AR), Tab 3, RFP at 1; Tab 13, Contracting Officer’s Statement (COS), at 2.[1]  In general terms, the RFP called for the provision of comprehensive on-site IT end-user support services to offices located within the National Capital Region, including offices in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia that are supported by the agency’s Office of the CIO, Client Experience Center (CEC).  RFP at 6.  The solicitation was structured into two phases.  The first phase required interested offerors to respond with a single-page affirmative response to “opt-in” in order to be eligible to submit a proposal in response to the second phase.  Id. at 2.  The second phase called for the submission of proposals in three volumes:  prior experience, past performance and price.  Id. at 5.  The RFP anticipated evaluation of proposals using prior experience, past performance and price.2  Id. at 123-124.  While the prior experience and past performance factors were to be individually evaluated, a single, overall “performance confidence” rating was to be assessed, and used in the performance-price tradeoff.3   Id. at 124.  Prior experience and past performance were more important than price.  Id.  Under the price factor, the government was to evaluate total price, inclusive of contract fee and options.  Id. at 127.  Eleven proposals were received in response to the second phase of the solicitation, including those from C&T and Ideation.  AR, Tab 5, EDR, at 1.  After an evaluation of proposals, the relevant results were as follows:   C&T Ideation Performance Confidence Substantial Confidence Substantial Confidence   Prior Experience Exceptional Exceptional   Past Performance Exceptional Exceptional Total Price $57,616,541 $37,349,784   AR, Tab 5, EDR, at 26-27.  The evaluation team recommended issuance of the task order to Ideation as the best value to the government, based on the firm’s “impressive examples” of prior experience, “exceptional quality” of past performance, and low price.  Id.