Praecomm, Inc. v. United States

78 Fed. Cl. 5, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 257, 2007 WL 2317519
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedAugust 9, 2007
DocketNo. 06-54C
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 78 Fed. Cl. 5 (Praecomm, Inc. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Praecomm, Inc. v. United States, 78 Fed. Cl. 5, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 257, 2007 WL 2317519 (uscfc 2007).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

LETTOW, Judge.

Praecomm, Inc. (“Praecomm”) alleges that its contracts with the United States Army (“the government”) were breached when the government decided not to install and use radio equipment delivered by Praecomm in accord with the contracts. Praecomm contends that it was misled as to the basis for the contracts and that the decision not to install the radios barred future opportunities that were part and parcel of the existing contracts. In particular, Praecomm avers that its prices for the radio equipment were aggressively low because it understood that the characteristics of its equipment would lead to awards of “follow on” contracts related to that equipment.

The government seeks summary judgment in its favor, claiming that no breach occurred and noting that Praecomm was paid in full for the amounts due under both contracts. Upon completion of briefing, a hearing was held on July 13, 2007. The disputed matter is ready for disposition.

BACKGROUND1

After the United States and coalition forces entered Baghdad, Iraq in March 2003, one of the main goals of the resulting Coalition Provisional Authority was the creation, training, and equipping of local police forces in cities and towns across Iraq. See Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (“Def.’s Mot.”) at 2-3; Appendix to Def.’s Mot. (“Def.’s App.”), 20-21 (United States Office of Management and Budget, Report to Congress Pursuant to Section 1506 of the Emergency Wartime Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2003 (June 2, 2003)). On December 17, 2003, the United States government awarded contract No. DABV01-03-C0032 (“Contract 0032”) to Praecomm (also known as American Radio, Inc.). Plaintiffs Brief Opposing Summary Judgment (“Pl.’s Br.”) at 4-5. Contract 0032 was for the provision and installation of analog, single-channel, handheld radios in Iraqi cities outside Baghdad, to constitute a First Responders Network (“FRN”). Def.’s Mot. at 3; Def.’s App., Deck of Col. John L. Graham (“Graham Deck”) ¶4 (Feb. 22, 2007).2 Thereafter, in April 2004, the CPA initiated the design of a more complex digital communications system known as the “Advanced First Responders Network” (“Advanced Network” or “AFRN”) as a more advanced solution for Iraqi first responders. Def.’s Mot. at 3-4; Def.’s App. 81 (Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Review of the Advanced First Responder Network (July 28, 2006)). Because of delays in the implementation of Advanced Network, [8]*8the United States Army contacted Praecomm and discussed the possibility of upgrading the existing single-channel radios delivered under Contract 0032 to a trunked system, which would offer enhanced security. Def.’s Mot. at 4; Graham Deck ¶¶ 4-6. The single-channel system required reprogramming each of the remaining radios by hand if one radio was lost, stolen, or captured, while a trunked system would allow a missing radio to be individually disconnected from the network without affecting the others. Graham Deck ¶¶ 6-7. In addition, a trunked system, unlike a single-channel system, would increase the available bandwidth and allow the addition of new users. Id. at ¶ 7.

The Project and Contracting Office (“Project Office”) in Iraq awarded contract No. W914NS-05-F-9001 (“Contract 9001”) to Praecomm on October 14, 2004, for upgrading and converting the radios delivered under Contract 0032 from a single-channel system to a trunked system in four cities. Pl.’s Br. at 6; Def.’s App. 140 (Contract 9001).3 The contract was executed on the standard commercial items contract form (SF 1449) and incorporated a statement of work (“SOW”). Def.’s App. 140 (Contract 9001). The SOW states that Praecomm was required to “provide distribution and installation of the radios at designated sites,” “ensure the devices are properly fielded,” and “provide training on the systems.” Id. at 144. The government’s responsibilities were to “provide a distribution plan and coordinate a distribution schedule” and “provide frequency plans.” Id. The government did not provide a distribution or frequency plan, nor did it coordinate a distribution schedule, and it did not order the installation of the radio networks. Pl.’s Br. at 8. Contract 9001’s total contract price of $363,878 included 1,502 radios ($283,878), labor to install the radios ($50,000), and a fee for miscellaneous expenses ($30,000). Def.’s App. 140 (Contract 9001).

Shortly after the award of Contract 9001, the Project Office planned to upgrade existing radio systems in several additional Iraqi cities by acquiring trunked radios similar to those provided under Contract 9001. Graham Deck ¶ 9. The SOW for this requirement, which eventually led to Contract No. W914NS-05-F-9027 (“Contract 9027”), specified that the vendor would provide 8-chan-nel trunked radio systems in five cities and 6-channel trunked radio systems in nine other cities. Def.’s Mot. at 7; Def.’s App. 148, 154 (Contract 9027).4 Contract 9027 was ■ awarded to Praecomm on December 6, 2004. Def.’s Mot. at 9; Def.’s App. 148 (Contract 9027). In the “Background” section of Contract 9027, the SOW states that the trunked radios “will need to become a long term solution given that the [Advanced Network] will not be put into many cities. The solution is to upgrade the existing analog system to a trunked radio network.” Def.’s App. 154 (Contract 9027). Under Contract 9027, the vendor was required to supply the specified radio equipment, install the equipment, and provide engineering and project management as needed. Id.

Due to increased violence in several cities in which the Advanced Network was to be implemented, Graham Deck ¶ 10, Contract 9027 was formally modified on January 28, 2005, to change the cities initially listed on the contract. Def.’s App. 158 (Mod.POOOOl). The modification changed the list of cities for the 6-channel trunked radio systems and stated that one additional system would be held as operational reserve. Id.; Ph’s Br. at 12.5 Except for the list of cities, all of the other terms and conditions of Contract 9027 remained the same. Compare Def.’s App. 154, with id. at 158 (Mod.POOOOl).

In late January 2005, Major Robert Sile, lead communications officer for the Civilian [9]*9Police Assistance and Training Team, discovered that the digital Advanced Network system was now expected to cover some of the cities where the Praecomm FRN system had been scheduled for deployment. Def.’s App., Decl. of Major Robert She (“Sile Deck”) ¶¶ 3-4 (Feb. 28, 2007). Major Sile decided to redirect Praeeomm’s radio systems to other cities that would not come under the digital Advanced Network umbrella later because it would be “wasteful and redundant” to have both systems in the same city. Id. at ¶4; Def.’s App. 193 (E-mail from Sile to Dominic Di Luigi, Praecomm (Mar. 5, 2005)). In response to this change, Mr. Dominic Di Luigi, Praecomm’s principal, informed Major Sile that Praecomm had “provided extremely aggressive pricing to the [Project Office] to be able to enter this market in the cities and manner we have been contracted to.” Id. at 197 (E-mail from Di Luigi to Sile (Mar. 5, 2005)). Thereafter, efforts were made to plan to field and install Praecomm’s radios in five of the 17 cities contemplated in Contracts 9001 and 9027, and to provide follow-on fielding in a number of other Iraqi cities. Id. at 216 (E-mail from Sile to Di Luigi (Mar. 26, 2005)), 218 (E-mail from Sile to Di Luigi (Apr.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
78 Fed. Cl. 5, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 257, 2007 WL 2317519, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/praecomm-inc-v-united-states-uscfc-2007.