[Protest of DCSC Solicitation for Plywood Items]

Five firms protested a Defense Construction Supply Center (DCSC) solicitation for plywood items, contending that DCSC improperly: (1) used requirements contracts to meet its needs; (2) failed to set the procurement aside for small businesses or labor-surplus-area concerns; (3) based the contract prices on a weekly trade price index; and (4) imposed the maximum risks of fixed freight prices on the contractor. GAO held that: (1) the protesters failed to show that the DCSC determination to use a requirements contract was unreasonable; (2) requirements contracts were exempt from small business set-aside regulations; (3) DCSC properly based the contract prices on a weekly trade price index, since bidders received equal treatment and could not influence the prices; and (4) DCSC properly required fixed freight prices within a specific geographic zone. Accordingly, the protests were denied.