B-125917, NOV. 3, 1955

B-125917, NOV. 3, 1955

TO HONORABLE RAYMOND BLATTENBERGER, PUBLIC PRINTER:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF OCTOBER 27, 1955, WITH ENCLOSURES, REQUESTING A DECISION AS TO THE ACTION TO BE TAKEN REGARDING AN ERROR THE EUGENE DIETZGEN COMPANY ALLEGES IT MADE IN ITS BID ON WHICH UNNUMBERED CONTRACT (PURCHASE ORDER NO. 6620) DATED OCTOBER 20, 1955, IS BASED.

UNDER THE CONTRACT, THE EUGENE DIETZGEN COMPANY AGREED TO FURNISH 3,040 SHEETS OF WHITE TRACING PAPER, SPECIAL SIZE 34 IN. BY 44 IN., FOR THE LUMP SUM OF $161.60. IN ITS LETTER OF OCTOBER 21, 1955, THE COMPANY ALLEGES THAT IN COMPUTING ITS BID PRICE FOR THE TRACING PAPER IT USED THE WRONG COLUMN ON ITS PRICE LIST AND COMPUTED ITS PRICE FROM THE 20 YARD ROLL INSTEAD OF THE REQUIRED 50 YARD ROLL. IN SUPPORT OF ITS ALLEGATION OF ERROR, THE COMPANY SUBMITTED A SHEET FROM ITS PRINTED PRICE LIST WHICH SHOWS THE LIST PRICES FOR THE REQUIRED TRACING PAPER IN STANDARD SHEET SIZES AND THE LIST PRICES OF THE TRACING PAPER IN 20 YARD AND 50 YARD ROLLS. IN ITS LETTER, TO SHOW THE MAGNITUDE OF THE ERROR, THE COMPANY POINTED OUT THAT THE LIST PRICE ON ITS PRINTED PRICE LIST FOR SIZE 22 IN. BY 34 IN. TRACING PAPER IS SHOWN AS BEING $107.05 PER 1,000 SHEETS; THAT THE REQUIRED 34 IN. BY 44 IN. SHEET WOULD THEREFORE LIST AT $214.10 PER 1,000 SHEETS, AND THAT AFTER APPLYING THE USUAL 40 PERCENT DISCOUNT, THE PROPER PRICE FOR THE TRACING PAPER WOULD BE $128.46 PER 1,000 SHEETS, OR $390.52 INSTEAD OF $161.60 FOR 3,040 SHEETS. YOU STATE THAT THE COMPANY'S PRICE LIST DOES INDICATE THAT THE COMPANY'S BID PRICE WAS BASED ON USING 20 YARD ROLLS RATHER THAN THE REQUIRED 50 YARD ROLLS. ALSO, YOU STATE THAT THE CONTRACTING OFFICER IS OF THE OPINION THAT IN VIEW OF THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE COMPANY'S BID ON THE TRACING PAPER AND THE OTHER BIDS RECEIVED ON THAT ITEM, THE COMPANY SHOULD HAVE BEEN REQUESTED TO VERIFY ITS BID PRIOR TO AWARD.

THE SEVEN OTHER BIDS ON THE TRACING PAPER RANGED FROM $277.50 TO $1,016.79. IN VIEW OF THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE COMPANY'S BID OF $161.60 FOR THE TRACING PAPER AND THE OTHER BIDS ON THAT ITEM, THE PROBABILITY OF ERROR WAS APPARENT AND, IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES, THE BID OF THE EUGENE DIETZGEN COMPANY SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED WITHOUT REQUESTING THE COMPANY TO VERIFY ITS BID.

ON THE BASIS OF THE FACTS AND EVIDENCE OF RECORD, THERE APPEARS NO ROOM FOR DOUBT THAT THE COMPANY MADE AN ERROR IN ITS BID, AS ALLEGED. ACCORDINGLY, THE AWARD MADE TO THE EUGENE DIETZGEN COMPANY ON OCTOBER 20, 1955, BY PURCHASE ORDER NO. 6620 SHOULD BE CANCELED.