Opinion ID: 1939265
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Whether the contract designated a sole-source supplier.

Text: Crough contends that the District wrote its technical specifications around a sole-supplier, by which it means that only Teniseal could provide both the specified materials and the specified five-year guarantee. Thus, Crough concludes, the government implicitly designated Teniseal as a sole-source supplier, which in turn triggered the government's warranty of commercial availability. The Board's Findings of Fact support this theory in part. The Board found that [t]he specifications for the wearing surface of the roof required materials made by only two known manufacturers, and the local area supplier for those manufacturers was the Teniseal Corporation. Teniseal in subcontracting with appellant bid on the basis of the material of one manufacturer. Decision of the Board, Aug. 9, 1985 at 19. Thus, this was unlike the situation in Aerodex, in which there was one and only one manufacturer. In theory, at least, the materials were available from one or the other manufacturer and/or from another supplier. However, this analysis does not address the whole of Crough's contention. The contract specified both materials and a five-year guarantee. Apparently, provision of the guarantee was predicated on the use to which the material would be subjected. Moreover, it appears that the material had to be installed by the supplier, Teniseal, and the supplier seems to have had some hand in determining whether the guarantee could be provided under the circumstances of that installation. In other words, Crough could not satisfy its contractual obligation simply by purchasing the material and installing it; Crough was also required to provide a five-year manufacturer's guarantee and, thus, Crough really had to deal with a supplier/installer. Teniseal was the only local supplier/installer. Based on its review of the District's roof design, Teniseal would not provide the required guarantee, because, in its view, the base for its product was too soft. Although it can be argued that Crough was free to go outside the area to find another supplier/installer, such an argument is meritless in view of the fact that the District agreed with Teniseal's view of the roof design and, in response to Teniseal's objections, altered the design of the roof. Thus, it is fair to say that Crough found itself in the position of having to deal with a sole-source supplier. It is also fair to say that by implicitly designating a sole-source supplier, the District warranted the commercial availability of the specified roofing materials with a five year guarantee.