NASA’s $2.9B end-user contract comes under protest

NASA isn’t getting a clean break from its troubled ACES contract like it hoped.

After awarding a $2.9 billion contract to Leidos earlier this month for NASA End-user Services and Technologies (NEST), incumbent contractor Perspecta, formerly HP Enterprise Services, filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office.

Perspecta submitted its complaint on Feb. 19. GAO has until May 30 to decide the case. Typically when an unsuccessful vendor files a protest, the award comes under an automatic stay.

Federal News Network has learned that Perspecta is challenging every part of NASA’s evaluation of the bids, and argues that if the evaluation had been done properly, Leidos wouldn’t have been selected.

Leidos won NEST, which is a 10-year firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, from NASA to manage most of the agency’s personal computing hardware, agency standard software, mobile IT services, peripherals and accessories, associated end-user services and supporting infrastructure.

NEST will replace NASA’s agency consolidated end-user services (ACES) contract, which it awarded to HPES in 2010 under a 10-year $2.5 billion deal, and it has been plagued by service and cybersecurity problems ever since.

Perspecta declined to comment on its protest.

A NASA spokeswoman said, “NASA does not comment on contract award protests. However, the agency has taken steps to ensure there will be no interruption in IT services currently provided under its Agency Consolidated End-user Services (ACES) contract.”

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