Medify Air LLC is suing the County of San Diego, alleging the air filtration devices intended to purify sewage air in the Tijuana River Valley fail to meet performance requirements outlined in a request for bids posted earlier this year.
In a May 11 civil complaint filed by Daniel J. Schneider, an Offit Kurman attorney representing Medify Air LLC, the company has asked a San Diego County Superior Court judge to direct the county to void a $26 million contract with Oransi LLC and award it to the petitioner – or hold an entirely new bidding process.
Medify Air LLC, based in Florida, claims the county unlawfully awarded a contract to Oransi LLC.
“After San Diego County conducted a thorough and professional procurement process, which included careful review and denial of a protest filed by Medify, San Diego County chose Oransi air purifiers over Medify because they fully met the County’s requirements and were the low price bidder,” said Peter Mann, Oransi founder and CEO, in a statement. “We are confident the court will uphold the County’s careful determination that the Oransi air filters provide the best value to San Diego citizens. Oransi’s proven track record with San Diego County speaks louder than baseless lawsuits from losing bidders.”
Donna Durckel, a communications officer with the County of San Diego, said the county will not comment on litigation.
Multiple protests
According to the petition, the bidding in January was to procure air purification devices, with requirements of effective odor and particulate mitigation as well as a noise decibel threshold, intended to mitigate chronic gas- and sewage-related odors for Tijuana River Valley residents.
The petition says in February Medify Air LLC told the county the bidding lacked necessary technical clarity and verification. The following month, according to the petition, the county issued an addendum.
“The County issued a solicitation imposing mandatory performance requirements, yet failed to define how compliance would be measured, preserved those ambiguities through Addendum No. 3, then relied on unverified manufacturer assurances as conclusive proof of compliance and ignored evidence of objective non-compliance,” the petition says.
The petition goes on to say Medify Air LLC submitted a bid demonstrating that its filters would meet filtration and noise requirements.
“While Medify submitted a responsive bid supported by independent third-party laboratory testing conducted using recognized methodologies and defined operating conditions, the county nevertheless awarded the contract to Oransi,” it continues.
The petition claims this determination poses a risk of non-compliant machines because “Oransi submitted manufacturer-generated performance claims without independent verification.”
According to the petition, Medify Air LLC was a second choice at a cost of $27.1 million.
The petition says a notice by the county identified Oransi LLC as No. 1 at a cost of $26.8 million, with Austin Air System Ltd as No. 3 at $62.4 million.
The petition says Medify Air LLC submitted a series of protests with “data demonstrating the insufficiency of Oransi’s submission.”
A letter dated April 8, in response to bid protests by Medify Air LLC, says the county did not require independent testing and received information from bidders that satisfied requirement concerns.
According to the petition, the county moved forward with an award to Orsani LLC, a Virginia based company, on April 13. Medify Air LLC then issued another protest.
“The County assures Medify … actions and determinations comply with all competitive procurement requirements,” wrote Matthew Patrick O’Sullivan, supervising deputy county counsel, in a letter dated April 23.
The petition argues respondents acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner by failing to follow proper procedures in granting the contract to Oransi and denying it to Medify by failing to use an objective standard to compare the units by true performance, it says.
According to Durckel, an existing agreement allows the county’s Purchasing and Contracting department to provide services to the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District.
Durckel emphasized the district’s Air Improvement Relief Effort (AIRE) program is not managed by the county.
“This is their program,” said Durckel. “We pay for the contract but they run it.”
Durckel referred all questions about the contracts, air purifier units and distribution to the district.
The district did not respond on deadline about the number of units distributed under the new contract awarded to Oransi on April 13.
Mann told The Coronado News it has provided more than 14,000 air purifiers to San Diego County residents under the AIRE program through the County’s prior procurement.
The company cited findings by the district which found that 88% of respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with their product.
According to Mann, the new contract is for a smaller size and lighter weight unit as compared to the previous contract.
As of May 22, the county’s website says the contract is effective through April 12, 2031.
