Decision released in DHS IT Services Protest denial

DIGEST:  1.  Protest challenging evaluation of the protester’s proposed key personnel and resulting finding of ineligibility for award is denied because the evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation.  2.  Protest challenging evaluation of the awardee’s proposal is dismissed because the protester is not an interested party to raise the challenge where its own proposal reasonably was found ineligible for award.

DISCUSSION:  Horizon challenges multiple aspects of the agency’s evaluation of the firm’s proposal, most importantly the evaluators’ findings that two of Horizon’s proposed key personnel failed to meet the solicitation’s minimum experience requirements and the SSO’s determination that Horizon, therefore, was ineligible for award.  Horizon also raises a myriad of challenges to the agency’s evaluation of the awardee’s proposed warehouse space.  For the reasons discussed below, we deny in part and dismiss in part the protest.3  Evaluation of Protester’s Key Personnel  The solicitation designated three personnel positions as key–program manager, warehouse manager, and quality manager–and required offerors to submit resumes for the individuals proposed to fill these three positions.  RFP at 17-20, 35-36.  The evaluators found that Horizon proposed individuals for two of the required key personnel positions that did not meet the minimum number of years of experience required by the solicitation.  AR, Tab 19, Horizon Technical Evaluation Report. at 6, 8.  The SSO concluded that proposing key personnel without the requisite experience “constitute[d] deficiencies and represent[ed] a failure of Horizon to meet the material terms of the solicitation, which render[ed] it ineligible for award.”  AR, Tab 17, Best-Value Report. at 28.    Horizon challenges the agency’s evaluation that two of the firm’s proposed key personnel failed to meet the solicitation’s experience requirements, and the resulting finding that Horizon was ineligible for award.  See generally Protest at 6-13; Comments & 2nd Supp. Protest at 1-14.  The agency responds that its evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation, and that because Horizon’s key personnel failed to meet material solicitation requirements, the SSO properly deemed the firm ineligible…

DECISION:  Horizon Industries, Ltd., a small business of Vienna, Virginia, protests the issuance of a task order to Candor Solutions LLC, a small business of Huntsville, Alabama, under request for proposals (RFP) No. 70RTAC22R00000003 issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for information technology (IT) services.  The protester challenges the agency’s evaluation of proposals and resulting source selection decision.  We deny the protest.

See the decision here.

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