Nope.
Contrary to popular belief, government contracts do take more than the lowest bid into consideration. Performance specs, repair parts availability and support, and more factor in.
I don’t know all the specifics of the particular RFQ, but in the end Raymarine got the bid- and we all k ow Raymarine gear isn’t bottom shelf.
Raymarine has consistently bid what it took to get large deals including government contracts. They also built a wide knowledge and desire for government bidding when they were part of Raytheon.
I personally wouldn't feel better or worse about them for this bid. To cite performance specs on government contracts overlooks huge numbers of disasters. In fact, what government bidding most neglects is performance after the sale. Many companies do not aggressively go after government contracts as they don't especially like them. They do impose some additional requirements on companies.
I might point out that Raymarine used aggressive bidding with Sea Ray and with the L Series it turned into disaster as equipment was installed that really wasn't ready and much had to be serviced and even replaced. To their credit they did stand behind it.
I would consider Raymarine mid shelf. Certainly I'd put them above Simrad. I've been told their customer service is improving as it needed to. I had good luck with Garmin but many are turned off today by some of their changes and by their lack of continued support for legacy products. Raymarine and Garmin would be my mid shelf companies.
There is talk above of the local electronics dealer and trust for them and that's certainly valuable and for those who boat primarily locally it may be the key. However, for those who boat in many different places and especially outside the US, then the global support of the manufacturer becomes very important. This is a place where Furuno's proliferation of commercial business comes into play as their support is excellent most any area you might cruise. If you don't leave an area such as the PNW and have a local dealer who is great with another brand then Furuno's wider support means little or nothing to you. It's the local dealer you depend on. However, if you're seeking support in Golfito, then the Furuno support to all the commercial ships that come there may be very valuable.
I think any of the four discussed here can do the job. The only one I would not buy is Simrad and that's largely due to support. Otherwise I think it's personal preference, local support, and worldwide support one looks at. If buying a new boat it may also be what the builder offers or what they're most comfortable with. Typically builders offer a choice. If they offer only one choice, that may be a good choice but it's also likely the one who "bought" their business with the best financial deal.
