IAP Worldwide Servs. v. United States

IAP Worldwide Servs. v. United States

Opinion

 [*274]  MEMORANDUM OPINION¹

SOLOMSON, Judge.

This case involves a billion dollar procurement; the range and number of the parties' arguments reflect the stakes of the dispute.

In this post-award bid protest action, Plaintiff, IAP Worldwide Services, Inc. ("IAP"), challenges the decision of Defendant, the United States — acting by [**2]  and through the U.S. Department of the Army, Army Contracting Command—Aberdeen Proving Ground (the "Army") — to award the Operations, Maintenance, and Defense of Army Communications in Southwest Asia and Central Asia ("OMDAC-SWACA") contract to Defendant-Intervenor, Vectrus Systems Corporation ("Vectrus"). IAP contests that contract award as arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law, including provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (the "FAR"). The parties filed cross-motions for judgment on the administrative record pursuant to Rule 52.1 of the Rules of the United States Court of Federal Claims ("RCFC").

For the reasons set forth below, the Court finds for IAP on a single issue, but declines to issue either monetary or injunctive relief, at least on the record as it currently stands. Instead, the Court orders supplemental briefing on the question of appropriate relief. Whether this case ultimately yields IAP a pyrrhic victory remains to be seen.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND²

A. The Solicitation

On April 3, 2019, the Army issued Solicitation No. W91RUS-19-R-0018 (the  [*275]  "Solicitation" or "RFP") for the OMDAC-SWACA contract, seeking operations and maintenance services for communications and information systems [**3]  supporting the 160th Signal Brigade of the U.S. Army Central, its subordinate units, U.S. Central Command, and the U.S. Army Regional Cyber Center Southwest Asia.³ The services are for various locations, including sites in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Qatar.⁴

The Solicitation informed potential offerors that the Army intended to award a single performance-based contract utilizing cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-reimbursable contract line items ("CLINs"), with a performance period of two sixty-day phase-in periods, an eight-month base period, and four one-year option periods. AR 3756 (§ B.2); AR 3974. The planned contract is estimated to be worth over one billion dollars.⁵ Vectrus is the incumbent contractor for the services sought in the RFP. AR 301 (Acquisition Plan). Proposals were due on May 17, 2019. AR 3951 (§ L.4.1.A).

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