Precision Standard, Inc., ASBCA No. 58135

Precision Standard, Inc. (PSI) appealed a default termination under Contract No. SPM4A7-08-M-9187 to the ASBCA (ASBCA No. 58135).
Government moved for summary judgment; the Board granted it, concluding the default termination was proper.
PSI also had a related appeal (ASBCA No. 58205) involving a government warranty/breach claim; cross-motions for summary judgment were denied in that appeal due to a factual dispute about the applicable welding standard.
PSI argued the government materially breached the contract (so PSI could stop performance) and that the termination arose from an improper warranty rejection; PSI sought partial reconsideration.
The Board found no record evidence of a government material breach, no attempt by PSI to raise or resolve the welding-standard dispute before termination, and that PSI refused government directions (Modification 3) and failed to provide assurances of performance.
The Board rejected PSI’s arguments and denied reconsideration, holding that the Disputes clause required continued performance despite any disagreement and that the contracting officer’s stated ground for default (failure to perform to contract terms) was independently sufficient.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the government materially breached, excusing PSI from performance	PSI: Government’s testing/welding-spec decisions amounted to a material breach, permitting suspension of performance	Gov.: No material breach; PSI failed to raise/attempt to resolve the issue and did not comply with contract directions	Held for Government: no evidence of a material breach; PSI had to continue performance under the Disputes clause
Whether the default termination was improper because it relied on an alleged improper warranty claim	PSI: Termination premised on an improper warranty rejection, so default was premature	Gov.: Termination was based on PSI’s failure to perform to contract terms (independent ground)	Held for Government: default termination valid and independent of the warranty dispute
Whether PSI was required to continue performance while disputing the government’s interpretation	PSI: contended it could stop performance pending resolution of dispute	Gov.: Disputes clause requires continuation of performance despite dispute	Held for Government: Disputes clause obligation to continue performance applies
Whether reconsideration should be granted on these grounds	PSI: raised same arguments, asserted Board overlooked/misapplied precedent	Gov.: urged denial; Board: no new evidence or legal error shown	Held: Motion for reconsideration denied

(No officially reporter-cited authorities with Bluebook reporter citations appear in the Board’s opinion that can be listed here.)