NASA issued Orbital ATK [OA] a stop work notice on April 8 after Ball Aerospace [BLL] protested the agency’s contract award for Joint Polar Satellite System-2 (JPSS-2).
NASA spokeswoman Karen Northon said Friday the April 8 stop work order was issued immediately after Ball’s bid protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) was filed on April 7. Northon said the stop work order was valid indefinitely. GAO said on its website its bid protest decision was due July 16. NASA in March awarded Orbital ATK a $253 million contract for JPSS-2, with a $130 million option for JPSS-3 and an $87 million option for JPSS-4.
According to a NASA decision document obtained by Defense Daily, NASA Director of Flight Projects George Morrow found that Orbital ATK’s total proposed firm fixed price was “significantly lower than the total proposed firm fixed price proposed by Ball.” Morrow said in the document Ball’s total proposed firm fixed price was approximately 15 percent higher than Orbital ATK’s. Morrow also found that Orbital ATK’s proposed basic price was somewhat higher than Ball’s basic price.
In evaluating for mission suitability, Morrow found Ball had three significant strengths, seven strengths and no weaknesses, while Orbital ATK had one significant strength, seven strengths and no weaknesses. Morrow found both companies received a pass for past performance, which he found negligible for source selection.
“While I found that (Ball’s) proposal offered a discernible technical advantage over (Orbital ATK’s) in the mission suitability factor,” Morrow said in the document. “The significant price savings offered by the (Orbital ATK) proposal significantly outweighs the technical advantage offered by (Ball).”
Ball spokeswoman Roz Brown acknowledged in an April 8 email that Orbital ATK’s proposal was selected because the total price for JPSS-2, plus the options for JPSS-3 and JPSS-4, was lower. However, Brown said, Ball’s JPSS-2 proposal was over $25 million less expensive than Orbital ATK’s. If you add in the option for JPSS-3, Brown said, Ball’s overall price was lower.
“While the total package price proposed by Ball was slightly higher, by 15 percent, Orbital’s price advantage would be realized only if NASA exercises the distant JPSS-4 option,” Brown said in the email. “This doesn’t consider the total system impact to change a satellite design, such as the cost to modify the ground system and to have five complex instruments interface with two different satellites.
Brown said only JPSS-2 is authorized and appropriated and the likelihood of sticking with the same design for JPSS-4 in 14 years is very uncertain as technology continues to change. Ball is the incumbent from JPSS-1, for which Brown said the company is performing on-cost and on-schedule.