PredictiveIQ LLC (AFX234-DCSO1)

B-421436.2 Jul 07, 2023 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights PredictiveIQ LLC, a small business of Boston, Massachusetts, protests the decision by the Department of the Air Force not to award it a contract for its proposal submitted in response to small business innovation research (SBIR) commercial solutions opening (CSO) direct to phase II, solicitation No. AFX234, Topic DCSO1, Orbital Prime. The protester complains that the agency unreasonably evaluated its proposal. 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: PredictiveIQ LLC File: B-421436.2 Date: July 7, 2023 Kevin T. Barnett, Esq., Annie B. Hudgins, Esq., Eric A. Valle, Esq., and Katherine B. Burrows, Esq., Piliero Mazza PLLC, for the protester. Erika Whelan Retta, Esq., Christian H. Robertson, Department of the Air Force, for the agency. Mary G. Curcio, Esq., and John Sorrenti, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest challenging agency’s evaluation of proposal is denied where protester has not demonstrated any possibility of competitive prejudice. DECISION PredictiveIQ LLC, a small business of Boston, Massachusetts, protests the decision by the Department of the Air Force not to award it a contract for its proposal submitted in response to small business innovation research (SBIR) commercial solutions opening (CSO) direct to phase II, solicitation No. AFX234, Topic DCSO1, Orbital Prime.[1] The protester complains that the agency unreasonably evaluated its proposal. We deny the protest. Background The SBIR program is conducted pursuant to the Small Business Innovation Development Act. 15 U.S.C. § 638. The statute requires certain federal agencies to reserve a portion of their research and development (R&D) funding for awards to small business concerns. Id. §§ 638(e)(4), (f). The program has three phases. In phase I, firms submit proposals to conduct research or R&D on specified topics. Id. § 638(e)(4). Phase I awardees may become eligible to compete for phase II awards which would involve prototyping, id. § 638(e)(4)(B), and phase III awards which would involve further pursuit of work derived from, extending, or completing efforts made under prior SBIR funding. Id. § 638(e)(4)(C). Direct to phase II awards are solicited under a congressionally approved pilot program. This program allows the Department of Defense (DOD) the flexibility to award phase II SBIR contracts or Other Transaction Authority agreements to small business concerns that complete the requirements of a phase I project, despite not having received a phase 1 award. 15 U.S.C. § 638(cc). On October 25, 2022, the Air Force released the CSO seeking direct to phase II proposals from small business concerns. The CSO identified two separate topics-AFX234-DCSO1-Orbital Prime and AFXDCSO2 (Open Topic)-Innovative Defense-Related Dual Purpose Technologies/Solutions with a Clear Air Force Stakeholder need. AR, Tab 3, CSO at 58-63. The instant protest concerns the orbital prime topic.[2] The solicitation provided that proposals that were responsive to the solicitation requirements would be evaluated against the following criteria: potential for government or private commercialization; defense need; and technical approach.[3] Id. at 49-50. The agency received 145 proposals in response to the orbital prime topic by the November 22 due date and evaluated 137 proposals.[4] The agency assigned a peer reviewer from a pool of engineers or scientists to evaluate each proposal based on technical merit without regard to other proposals received. Contracting Officer’s Statement at 7-8; CO Declaration, May 22, 2023, at 3. The reviewers assigned adjectival ratings (excellent, good, acceptable, marginal, poor) for each of the three evaluation criteria based on features of the proposal and areas in which the evaluator believed the proposal needed improvement. Id. at 4; AR, Tab 19, Proposal Rankings. After the peer review was completed the agency’s managing organization program manager (lead evaluator) ranked each proposal based on its individual ratings, and informed the contracting officer of the recommended proposals based on the funding available. See CO Declaration, May 22, 2023, at 4.[5] Subsequently, the contracting officer notified the offerors of the funding selection decisions. Id. PredictiveIQ submitted its proposal, which was titled Physics Informed Machine Learning for Improved Maneuverability to Support In-Space Servicing, Assembly, & Manufacturing, in response to the orbital prime topic.[6] The peer reviewer who evaluated the proposal rated it good under the commercialization potential factor, acceptable under the defense need factor, and excellent under the technical approach factor.