Link: GAO Opinion
Agency: Department of the Air Force
Disposition: Protest denied.
General Counsel P.C. Highlight:
GAO denied the protest of DynCorp International LLC regarding the award of a contract to
L-3 Communications Vertex Aerospace LLC under a request for proposals (RFP) No. FA3002-11-R-0007, issued by the Department of the Air Force to acquire aircraft maintenance services at Columbus Air Force Base (AFB), Mississippi.
The RFP contemplated the award of a fixed-price contract for aircraft maintenance services for an 11-month base period and up to six one-year option periods. The RFP stated that proposals would be evaluated based on technical and small business management factors. The technical factor included integration and changeover plan, management approach, technical approach, and staffing and workforce plan. Once the agency determined which proposals were technically acceptable, the agency informed offerors that it would consider past performance and price.
DynCorp first argued that the agency gave undue weight to negative past performance information relating to a Sheppard AFB contract. GAO, after a review of the record, concluded that it would not object to the agency’s assignment of a satisfactory confidence rating where the agency carefully considered DynCorp’s performance of that contract. The evaluators found that DynCorp consistently received marginal ratings on its contractor performance assessment report system reports and its past performance questionnaires. The evaluators also spoke with Sheppard AFB personnel who advised that there were ongoing problems with DynCorp’s performance.
DynCorp next argued that the agency improperly failed to perform a price realism evaluation. GAO dismissed this argument where the RFP made no mention of a price realism evaluation, but only mentioned that price would be evaluated to see whether it was reasonable.
Finally, DynCorp argued that the agency engaged in misleading discussions where the discussion questions led it to increase its proposed staffing. DynCorp’s argument relied on the CO’s statements during one of DynCorp’s debriefings, but GAO stated that the record and not the statements made during a debriefing, provide the basis for GAO’s review. The record provided no evidence that DynCorp’s proposal was downgraded or less favorably affected by an alleged offer of excess staffing. Therefore, the agency did not mislead DynCorp during discussions into proposing excessive staffing.