PROTEST DECISION ANNOUNCED The U.S. Court of Federal Claims ruled Friday that the award of the Antarctic support contract to Raytheon should stand. The court, which has jurisdiction over federal contracts, held that the National Science Foundation’s “award was an appropriate exercise of discretion, and neither arbitrary nor capricious.” The judge’s decision determined that while ASA and Raytheon had scored similarly in the evaluation, NSF had chosen the contractor it thought would offer the best value to the program. According to the court, the evaluation process involved technical knowledge and detailed understanding. The decision was complex enough that the court would not set aside the award which resulted from it. Raytheon officials in McMurdo said the company is ready to begin the hiring process with full communication with ASA employees. However, lawyers for all parties are not yet sure if the protective order remains in place. Until this is known, Raytheon will remain unable to discuss salaries and compensation with ASA employees, and ASA staff cannot reveal proprietary information to Raytheon. ASA has the right to appeal the ruling, but it is not clear yet if it will exercise that right. From the Antarctic Sun, 30 January 2000