Proposal Evaluation Protest

A company protested a proposed contract award, alleging that actions on the part of the procuring activity constituted reopening of negotiations and that award to the company would represent the greatest value to the Government. There was no basis to conclude that plant visits constituted a reopening of negotiations. The awardee's proposal was selected since it achieved the highest technical rating, had a satisfactory record of past performance, and was judged to be most cost realistic. The protester's proposal represented a substantially higher technical risk, and its cost proposal was considered "minimally" realistic. There was no basis to conclude that the agency arbitrarily exercised discretion in evaluating the offers or in proposing award to another offerer.