TITLE: B-310759; B-310759.2, Tiger Truck LLC, February 7, 2008
BNUMBER: B-310759; B-310759.2
DATE: February 7, 2008
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B-310759; B-310759.2, Tiger Truck LLC, February 7, 2008
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: Tiger Truck LLC
File: B-310759; B-310759.2
Date: February 7, 2008
David P. Metzger, Esq., and Kristen E. Ittig, Esq., Arnold & Porter LLP,
for the protester.
James H. Roberts, III, Esq., and Carrol H. Kinsey, Jr., Esq., Van Scoyoc
Kelly PLLC, and Henry P. Schrenker, Esq., The Schrenker Law Firm, for Mag
International, Inc., an intervenor.
Lee W. Crook, III, Esq., and Erica Stigall, Esq., General Services
Administration, for the agency.
Jennifer D. Westfall-McGrail, Esq., and Edward Goldstein, Esq., Office of
the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision.
DIGEST
1. Protest that successful vendor did not furnish a quotation for utility
trucks with features requested by the agency such as E-85 (ethanol)
engines and automatic transmissions is denied where it was clear from the
successful vendor's quotation that it was offering trucks with the
specified features.
2. Where request for quotations required past performance references from
customers who had purchased vehicles of "the same or similar makes and
models" as those solicited, vendors were not restricted to submitting
references from customers who had previously purchased vehicles identical
to those solicited.
DECISION
Tiger Truck LLC protests the General Services Administration's (GSA)
issuance of a task order for utility trucks and vans to Mag International,
Inc. pursuant to request for quotations (RFQ) No. QSDACEB-Z4-07-2320. The
protester argues that Mag's quotation should have been rejected as
technically unacceptable.
We deny the protest.
The RFQ was issued by GSA's Federal Acquisition Service to acquire
vehicles on behalf of the Department of the Air Force. The solicitation
sought quotations for the delivery of five types of utility trucks and
vans to over 70 different locations both in and outside the United
States.[1] The utility vehicles have a maximum speed of 25 m.p.h. and are
not designed for use on commercial roadways or interstate highways; that
is, they are for use on base only. The RFQ furnished a technical
description for each type of vehicle, which defined required features of
the vehicles such as their rated load capacity, gross weight rating, prime
mover (i.e., engine) type, transmission type, and seating capacity. The
solicitation also identified several customized options that the
Government might request on particular vehicles. Of relevance to this
protest, these options included an E-85 (ethanol) engine (in place of the
standard gas engine) and an automatic transmission.[2] Pricing
spreadsheets identified the optional features to be included on the
vehicles ordered; the locations to which the vehicles were to be
delivered, and the number of vehicles to be delivered to each location.
The solicitation provided for issuance of an order to the vendor
submitting the lowest priced technically acceptable quotation. The RFQ
defined the following standards for determining technical acceptability:
1. Technical conformance to the Government's Specifications.
a. Conformance to DLA [National Stock Number] Configuration
Data Sheet
b. Proper Identification of the current manufacturing Country
of Origin.
2. Delivery of ALL [vehicles] within 120 Calendar Days After
Approval of 1^st Article Inspection.
3. Past Performance References
a. Contractor shall submit a minimum of five (5)
past-performance references with current contact information
(including office phone number and email addresses).
b. Reference list shall consist entirely of former and
current customers who have purchased the same or similar makes and
models of the [vehicles] requested in the solicitation.
4. Manufacturer's Warranty Terms shall include a minimum of
full-coverage for 12,000 miles AND 12 months from date of Government
Acceptance, whichever event occurs sooner.
RFQ amend. PA04, at 2 and 12.
Three vendors submitted quotations prior to the August 31, 2007 due date.
The agency's technical evaluators determined the quotations of both Tiger
and Mag to be technically acceptable and the quotation of the third vendor
to be technically unacceptable. Mag quoted a total price of $6,776,001,
whereas Tiger quoted a price of $9,218,377. Because Mag's quotation was
technically acceptable and lower in price than Tiger's, the agency
selected Mag to receive the order. The order was issued on September 21.
On September 27, Tiger filed an agency-level protest objecting to issuance
of the order to Mag. By decision dated October 25, the contracting officer
dismissed in part and denied in part the protest. On November 5, Tiger
protested to our Office.
In its protest, Tiger alleged that Mag "does not and cannot produce"
vehicles that meet the RFQ's requirements pertaining to seating capacity,
or that incorporate E-85 engines and/or automatic transmissions. Protest
at 7. Accordingly, Tiger concluded that the agency must have waived its
request for these features in evaluating Mag's quotation for technical
acceptability.[3] In support of its allegation, the protester asserted
that Mag had not in the past sold vehicles incorporating the above
features.
The agency addressed these issues in a detailed manner in its report,
citing evidence in support of its finding that Mag had complied with the
above features. Specifically, the agency highlighted specification and
requirements charts Mag had included in its quotation (the former
summarized the specifications of the vehicles offered by Mag, while the
latter listed the RFQ's technical requirements for each vehicle and stated
whether or not the vehicle offered by Mag complied with each requirement).
Tiger, however, in its comments did not take issue with or attempt to
rebut the agency's position and arguments that Mag had offered vehicles
with the required seating capacities and with the option of an automatic
transmission. In addition, except as to the required cargo vans, Tiger did
not take issue with or attempt to rebut the agency's position that Mag had
offered the option of an E-85 engine on all vehicle types. Accordingly, we
consider Tiger to have abandoned all of the foregoing arguments.[4] CM
Mfg., Inc., B-292370, Mar. 2, 2004, 2004 CPD para. 69 at 3.
Tiger, however, continued to argue that the cargo vans offered by Mag
failed to offer the option of an E-85 engine. In support of its argument,
the protester correctly pointed out that neither the specification chart
nor the requirements chart for Mag's cargo van represented that the E-85
engine was available as an option.[5] The agency responded that Mag had
made clear on its pricing spreadsheets that it was offering vehicles with
E-85 engines where requested. The agency explained that in response to
each line item requesting a cargo van with an E-85 engine, Mag had quoted
a price for a vehicle that it identified as a C-Mag Utility Cargo Van
"with E-85." We think that this was sufficient to make clear that Mag was
offering pricing for cargo vans with E-85 engines where requested and that
the agency's evaluation in this regard was reasonable.
Next, Tiger argues that the agency's evaluation of Mag's past performance
was flawed. According to Tiger, the RFQ required each vendor to submit
five past performance references from customers who had previously
purchased from it vehicles identical to those solicited here, that is,
trucks with E-85 engines and automatic transmissions, and that Mag failed
to provide the required references.
The evaluation of past performance, including the agency's determination
of the relevance and scope of a vendor's performance history to be
considered, is a matter of agency discretion that we will not find
improper unless it is unreasonable, inconsistent with the solicitation
criteria or procurement statute or regulation, or undocumented. Standard
Commc'ns., Inc., B-296972, Nov. 1, 2005, 2005 CPD para. 200 at 5. Here,
there simply is no basis for the protester's argument that the agency was
required under the solicitation to consider only past performance
references from customers who had previously purchased vehicles identical
to those under the RFQ. Rather, the solicitation explicitly permitted
references from customers who had purchased "similar" makes and models.
RFQ amend. PA04, at 2 and 12. Consistent with the RFQ, the agency
determined that the past performance references submitted by Mag were for
sufficiently similar vehicles, and the protester has not demonstrated that
this determination was unreasonable.
The protester also argues that the agency failed to document adequately
its evaluation of vendors' past performance. In support of this
contention, Tiger notes that the only documentation in the record
pertaining to the evaluation of Mag's past performance consisted of the
following:
Robins AFB, GA [deleted]
Vandenburg AFB, CA [deleted]
Camp Pendleton, CA [deleted]
The vendor provided fourteen (14) prior past performance references. A
random sample of 3 references were selected to be contacted. Question
topics to be asked included overall quality of the vehicle, and level of
satisfaction with the purchase. Prior customers gave an acceptable
approval rating of the Utility Vehicles.
AR, Tab 16. The protester contends that the documentation is deficient
because it furnishes "no indication of what vehicles Mag provided at the
three selected sites, or what response was received from the three
individuals referenced for those three sites." Supplemental Protest and
Comments, Dec. 17, 2007, at 10. The protester further argues that the
documentation is deficient in that it fails to demonstrate that the agency
reasonably considered the similarity of Mag's prior contracts in its
evaluation.
We recognize that the contemporaneous narrative description of the
agency's past performance evaluation is sparse; however, given the limited
scope of the past performance information sought by the agency, and the
fact that there was to be no comparative assessment of vendors' past
performance under the evaluation scheme here--past performance was merely
evaluated on a pass/fail basis--we conclude that the contracting officer's
documentation was sufficient and supports the reasonableness of the
agency's evaluation of Mag's past performance. While the protester argues
that there is no evidence that the contracting officer in fact inquired as
to the similarity of the vehicles previously furnished by Mag to those
solicited, it is clear from the record that the agency obtained
information from Mag's past performance references regarding their ratings
on experience with Mag "utility vehicles," which are the same general type
of vehicles sought under the RFQ. Moreover, the record demonstrates that
the past performance inquiries reflects that the customers' viewed Mag's
performance as "acceptable." As a consequence, we have no basis to sustain
the protest in this regard.
Finally, in a supplemental protest filed on November 12, 2007, Tiger
argued that GSA should have disqualified Mag's quotation from
consideration because Mag utilizes a Chinese company as a subcontractor in
the manufacture of its vehicles, Harbin Hafei Motor Co., Ltd., which is
"integrally entwined" with a company (the China National Aero-Technology
Import and Export Company (CATIC)) that the Department of State has banned
from receiving federal contracts pursuant to the Iran and Syria
Nonproliferation Act, Pub. L. 106-178, 114 Stat. 38 (2000), as amended by
Pub. L. 109-112, 119 Stat. 2366 (2005).[6] We dismiss this ground of
protest as untimely.
Our Bid Protest Regulations contain strict rules for the timely submission
of protests. Under these rules, as a general matter, protests based on
other than alleged solicitation improprieties must be filed no later than
10 calendar days after the protester knew, or should have known, of the
basis for protest, whichever is earlier. 4 C.F.R. sect. 21.2(a)(2) (2007).
Our timeliness rules reflect the dual requirements of giving parties a
fair opportunity to present their cases and resolving protests
expeditiously without unduly disrupting or delaying the procurement
process. Dominion Aviation, Inc.--Recon., B-275419.4, Feb. 24, 1998, 98-1
CPD para. 62 at 3.
Here, the record clearly reflects that as of July 5, 2007, Tiger was aware
of Mag's use of Harbin Hafei in the manufacture of its utility trucks. See
AR, Tab 5-A. Tiger, therefore should have known of Mag's alleged
ineligibility for award when it learned of the September 21 order to Mag
and at the time it filed its September 27 agency-level protest. Tiger,
however, did not raise this issue until November 12, in a supplemental
protest to our Office, nearly 2 months later, and more than 10 days after
Tiger was on notice of this basis for protest.[7]
The protest is denied.
Gary L. Kepplinger
General Counsel
------------------------
[1] The five types of vehicles sought were utility trucks with standard
cabs (pricing for a total of 329 requested), utility trucks with crew cabs
(190 requested), utility cargo vans (194 requested), heavy duty utility
trucks with standard cabs (56 requested), and heavy duty utility trucks
with crew cabs (3 requested).
[2] E-85 engines were requested on 221 of the 329 trucks with standard
cabs, on 69 of the 190 trucks with crew cabs, on 103 of the 194 vans, and
on all of the heavy duty trucks. Automatic transmissions were requested on
171 of the trucks with standard cabs, 58 of the trucks with crew cabs, 81
of the vans, and all of the heavy duty trucks.
[3] The required seating capacity for each of the five vehicle types was
"two-three." RFQ amend. PA04, at 4-8.
[4] The protester also alleged in its initial protest that the heavy duty
utility trucks offered by Mag failed to meet the RFQ's technical
requirements pertaining to rated load capacity and vehicle gross weight
rating. While Tiger's protest did not include any factual support for its
allegation, the agency demonstrated in its report that the heavy duty
trucks offered by Mag were in compliance with the above requirements.
Again, Tiger did not address these issues in its comments and we therefore
conclude that these arguments were abandoned as well.
[5] Under the RFQ, vendors merely had to self-certify compliance with the
various vehicle requirements and specified options. Contracting Officer's
Statement at 12.
[6] Tiger did not raise this argument in its agency-level protest.
[7] Tiger contends that this basis of protest is timely because it did not
learn that Mag's subcontractor was a banned entity until November 6, 2007.
According to Tiger, uncovering such information took "time and effort"
through its own investigation, which it "diligently pursued." Tiger's
Comments on Supplemental AR, Dec. 26, 2007, at 4. Beyond general
assertions regarding the difficult nature of piecing together information
regarding Mag's subcontractor Harbin Hafei, and its own due diligence,
Tiger has failed to provide any evidence to support a finding that it
should not have recognized Mag's ineligibility when it learned of the
agency's decision to place the order with Mag, nor has Tiger provided any
evidence suggesting that it did in fact initiate its investigation of
Mag's subcontractor in a timely and diligent manner. As a consequence,
there is no basis for our office to conclude that Tiger's protest in this
regard was timely filed.