What's Happening?
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has denied KBR's protest regarding the loss of a $1.8 billion NASA contract to the Ascend joint venture, composed of Aerodyne Industries and Amentum. KBR, the incumbent
contractor, filed a protest after NASA awarded the COSMOS contract to Ascend, which supports command-and-control systems for various space programs. KBR argued that Ascend should have been disqualified for not including a small business plan. However, GAO found that the solicitation did not require disqualification for missing small business goals, and Ascend was not required to submit such a plan due to its status as a small business joint venture. KBR also contested the evaluation of its proposal, claiming NASA removed the word 'greatly' to lower its rating. NASA countered that the removal was part of a cleanup of sloppy wording, applied to all bidders. KBR's final argument was that its past performance should have been rated 'very high' instead of 'high', but GAO rejected this, noting KBR's performance scores had declined.
Why It's Important?
This decision underscores the competitive nature of government contracts and the importance of proposal evaluation criteria. The GAO's ruling highlights the significance of cost and performance scores in contract awards. Ascend's lower evaluated cost and high proposal score were pivotal in NASA's decision, demonstrating the agency's focus on best-value tradeoff evaluations. This outcome affects KBR's business operations, as it loses a significant contract supporting NASA's human spaceflight operations. The decision also emphasizes the role of GAO in ensuring fair competition and adherence to solicitation requirements, impacting how companies approach future government contract bids.
What's Next?
With GAO's decision, Ascend is set to take over the work from KBR, supporting the Johnson Space Center's human spaceflight operations. This includes systems engineering, research and development, mission operations, IT, and technical services. The COSMOS contract has a five-year base period with two additional two-year options, providing Ascend with a long-term engagement with NASA. KBR may need to reassess its strategy for future bids and address the factors that led to its lower proposal score. The decision may also prompt other companies to closely examine their proposal strategies to align with NASA's evaluation criteria.
