[Protest of Army Contract Award for Advanced Training Materials]

A firm protested an Army contract award, contending that the awardee submitted a below-cost offer in an attempt to buy in with the intention of later gaining a cost adjustment. GAO has held that: (1) there is no legal basis to object to a contract award solely because the awardee submitted a below-cost or buy-in offer; and (2) regulations require only that the contracting officer take appropriate actions to ensure that losses due to below-cost awards are not recovered. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.