[Protest of Air Force Refusal To Consider Late Technical Literature]

A firm protested its exclusion from the competitive range under a solicitation issued by the Air Force for minicomputers and systems software. During its preaward survey, the Air Force identified numerous deficiencies in the protester's proposal and requested that it be updated. However, the Air Force did not receive the requested information from the protester by the specified response date. The Air Force found that the protester's failure to supply the information was a technical deficiency and eliminated the protester from the competitive range. The protester contended that, since it had guaranteed to meet all mandatory requirements and was the lowest offerer, it was entitled to the award. GAO held that an agency may properly exclude a proposal from the competitive range when: (1) information deficiencies are so material that upgrading the proposal would require major revisions or submission of a new proposal; and (2) it cannot determine whether the proposal is acceptable due to the offerer's failure to provide requested technical literature by the specified deadline. Further, GAO found that: (1) since the system offered by the protester was new, the failure to provide technical information was a material deficiency and the Air Force did not need to consider the protester's low price; (2) a blanket offer to meet requirements will not substitute for a detailed description of offered equipment and services; and (3) when offerers are asked for information needed to evaluate proposals or are given an opportunity to revise proposals, discussions have occurred. Accordingly, the protest was denied.