Summit Technologies, Inc. (W9124920C0020)

B-419126,B-419126.2 Nov 19, 2020 Jump To FULL REPORT VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Summit Technologies, Inc., a small business of Pensacola, Florida, protests the award of a sole-source contract to Ad Hoc Research Associates, LLC, a small business of Havre de Grace, Maryland, by the Department of the Army, pursuant to solicitation No. W91249-20-R-0044, for up to four months of experimentation support services at Fort Gordon, Georgia. The protester contends that there was no unusual and compelling urgency to justify the award to Ad Hoc. The protester further contends that the agency should have conducted a limited competition for its immediate requirements. 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:  Summit Technologies, Inc. File:  B-419126; B-419126.2 Date:  November 19, 2020 Jonathan T. Williams, Esq., Patrick T. Rothwell, Esq., Jason A. Blindauer, Esq., and Camilla J. Hundley, Esq., Piliero Mazza PLLC, for the protester. Terry L. Elling, Esq., and Hillary J. Freund, Esq., Holland & Knight, LLP, for Ad Hoc Research Associates, LLC, the intervenor. Captain Richard W. Hagner, Department of the Army, for the agency. Charmaine A. Stevenson, Esq., and Laura Eyester, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest challenging agency’s award of a sole-source contract using simplified acquisition procedures is denied where the record shows that the agency reasonably determined that there was only one source immediately available to meet the agency’s urgent requirements for experimentation support services. DECISION   Summit Technologies, Inc., a small business of Pensacola, Florida, protests the award of a sole-source contract to Ad Hoc Research Associates, LLC, a small business of Havre de Grace, Maryland, by the Department of the Army, pursuant to solicitation No. W91249-20-R-0044, for up to four months of experimentation support services at Fort Gordon, Georgia.  The protester contends that there was no unusual and compelling urgency to justify the award to Ad Hoc.  The protester further contends that the agency should have conducted a limited competition for its immediate requirements. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND On February 20, 2020, the Army issued a related request for proposals (RFP) No. W91249-20-R-0002, for the award of an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract with performance consisting of a 1-year base period and four 1-year option periods for experimentation support services for the Cyber Battle Lab (CBL), Cyber Capabilities Development Integration Directorate, Future Concepts Center, and United States Army Futures Command at Fort Gordon, Georgia.  Protest at 3.  On July 28, the Army awarded a contract under that solicitation to Ad Hoc with a period of performance beginning July 30 and ending July 29, 2025.  Id. at 4; Agency Report (AR), Tab 13, Market Research at 2.  On August 10, Summit filed a protest challenging the contract award to Ad Hoc.[1]  Id.  As a result of the protest, work on the contract was suspended.  Contracting Officer’s Statement at 1. On August 14, the agency issued the solicitation that is the subject of this protest, RFP No. W91249-20-R-0044, directly to Ad Hoc seeking substantially the same services as the earlier solicitation but for a maximum of four months.  Id.  Ad Hoc submitted a proposal that same day.  Id.  On August 17, the agency instructed Ad Hoc to proceed with contract performance, and on August 28, final execution of contract W91249-20-C-0020 occurred.  Id.  Concurrently, the agency prepared and approved a sole-source justification and approval (J&A) document using Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 13.5 procedures for certain commercial items, citing unusual and compelling urgency.  Agency Report (AR), Tab 12, J&A at 3.  Specifically, the agency stated: Mission readiness will be negatively affected if the Cyber Battle Lab Experimentation Support were to incur a “break” or loss of functionality.  There is no other vendor available that can continue to provide uninterrupted support during this stay.  This bridge will also allow critical contract support to continue to support the [DELETED] the Army has invested this year to conduct the annual Cyber Quest prototyping experimentation event.  This event is critical to the Army because it provides the premier venue where key stakeholders, industry and academia have an opportunity to integrate approved Cyber, Electronic Warfare, and Signal technologies in an operational context at the Brigade Combat Team and below levels.  The experiment requires a year of planning and testing that culminates in a month long event used to inform/validate concepts, capability requirements documents, Network-Cross Functional Team lines of...