Summary: Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Army Corps of Engineers' contract for upgrading electrical systems at Clear Air Force Station, Alaska, to determine whether the Corps correctly restricted the purchase of certain brand-name electrical equipment.
GAO found that the Corps' Alaska District improperly restricted the purchase of electrical equipment, since: (1) it did not perform market research and analysis to evaluate other manufacturers' products; (2) it could have saved over $600,000 had it allowed for competition among manufacturers; (3) it did not ensure that officials followed federal acquisition regulation (FAR) requirements during the presolicitation phase; (4) the North Pacific Division did not determine whether the Alaska District's request to restrict specifications met relevant FAR requirements; and (5) its competition advocate did not challenge decisions to restrict specifications to brand-name equipment on competitive construction contracts. GAO also found that the identified management control weaknesses reflected common practices on other contracts the Alaska District and the North Pacific Division managed.
