Bucks Company To Pay Nearly $200K For Failing To Meet Contract

PHILADELPHIA, PA — A tech company based in Bucks County has agreed to pay $192,586 and implement enhanced compliance measures to resolve claims that it failed to meet federal contract obligations, the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Monday.

The settlement resolves claims that Combustion Research and Flow Technology, Inc. (CRAFT), based in Pipersville, proposed that work would be performed by particular individuals who then "performed little or no documented work on the contract," federal prosecutors said.

The company had been awarded Small Business Innovation and Research contracts through the Department of Defense and NASA to perform the research.

"Federally contracted researchers must account accurately for their time so that the United States knows it has received the work for which it bargained," Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer Williams said. "Timekeeping obligations are especially important for the principal investigators and other key personnel upon whose qualifications the contracts were awarded. Whether a contractor is a small business, a major university, or a Fortune 500 company, principal investigators need to ensure that the government knows who is doing the work, and any changes in personnel must be clearly communicated to the United States before being made.”

As part of the settlement agreement, CRAFT has agreed to enhance its compliance program, which Williams commended.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability, prosecutors said.

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