Protest challenging offeror’s exclusion from the competition due to a technically unacceptable proposal is denied. The agency found that the protester had failed to adequately demonstrate experience with several IT processes as required by the solicitation. The protester contended it had demonstrated experience with these processes. GAO found that the protester had merely mentioned or alluded to these processes; it had not demonstrated its experience actually implementing the processes.
The Air Force published a solicitation seeking to award IDIQ contracts for various IT services. THE EDCCENTECH GROUP submitted a proposal in response to the solicitation. The Air Force, however, found EDCCENTECH’s proposal technically unacceptable and thus excluded EDCCENTECH from the competition. EDCCENTECH’s proposal had not received the minimum number of points required under the solicitation’s technical experience factor. EDCCENTECH protested alleging that the agency had failed to properly evaluate its technical experience.
EDCCENTECH challenged the Air Force’s evaluation under a sub-factor that required offerors to demonstrate experience building and testing an information system. EDCCENTECH claimed that its use an Agile Scrum methodology, which was discussed in its proposal, demonstrated the building of an information system.
GAO found, however, that mere use of an Agile methodology did not demonstrate experience building an information system. The solicitation required offerors to demonstrate their experience through an explanation of the steps they took to compile source code. Conclusory language regarding use of an Agile process does not provide the type of detail the solicitation required.
EDCCENTECH next argued that the Air Force’s evaluation under a modernization sub-element was flawed. EDCCENTECH asserted that its proposal demonstrated experience providing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with cloud computing services, which necessarily encompassed the modernization of an information system. But GAO determined that implementing a cloud system for ATF did not fulfill the evaluation criteria requirement to demonstrate experience modernizing an information system. Merely migrating data to a cloud does not in any way show that EDCCENTECH had experience with the specific steps involved in modernization.
Next, EDCCENTECH challenged the Air Force’s evaluation under the solicitation’s cybersecurity element. The solicitation required offerors to demonstrate knowledge and experience using the Risk Management Framework. EDCCENTECH claimed that one of the projects discussed in it technical narrative had followed the risk management framework. But GAO found that merely mentioning the risk management framework does not demonstrate experience using that framework. EDCCENTECH’s adherence to the risk management framework in another project did not show knowledge of the framework.
Finally, EDCCENTECH argued that the Air Force erred in finding that the company had not demonstrated experience modifying an existing information system to operate in an DISA DECC of DoD computing facility. EDCCENTECH contended that it had this experience because one of it information systems operated in an Army facility. GAO determined that the while EDCCENTECH’s system may have operated in an Army facility, this failed to demonstrate experience developing, designing, or modifying a system so that it could operate on a DoD facility.
EDCCENTECH is represented by Kenneth A. Martin of The Martin Law Firm, PLLC. The agency is represented by Alexis J. Bernstein, Lieutenant Colonel Kevin P. Stiens, and Francis D. Hollifield of the U.S. Air Force. GAO attorneys Katherine I. Riback and Amy B. Pereira participated in the preparation of the decision.
