The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has awarded IBM a services contract to modernize the system that federal agencies and their suppliers use to source equipment, supplies, information technology (IT) and telecommunications services. The award has a contract value of $74.4 million over an eight-year period.

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IBM will work with the GSA to design and develop a standard IT architecture that will support the agency's Integrated Acquisition Environment (IAE), which is used by hundreds of thousands of civilian and defense employees, as well as companies doing business with the U.S. federal government and other interested parties. The project will include the integration of nine key GSA applications into a single system -- based on open source software -- designed to simplify the entire acquisition and procurement process. This integration will allow the GSA to provide a one-stop online resource where federal agencies and suppliers can access information ranging from approved products and services and existing GSA contracts to contractor registrations and certifications, project reports, and federal business opportunities.

The modernization effort is part of an ongoing effort by the GSA to use innovative technologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance the quality and accessibility of services to federal clients. By streamlining and consolidating current IAE applications into the new standard architecture, the GSA could realize significant operating cost savings.

"The GSA continues to play a central role in transforming the government's procurement process, making it easier and more cost-effective for federal agencies to acquire products and services," said Charles L. Prow, Managing Partner, IBM Global Business Services, Public Sector. "IBM is very pleased to support this important initiative."

Northrop Grumman, Vertex Information and Computer Consulting Services (VICCS), Inc., and Collins Consulting, Inc., will work with IBM on the project.

The General Services Administration is the nation's premier federal acquisition and procurement agency. The agency's mission is to leverage the buying power of the U.S. federal government to secure, in the most cost-effective, transparent, and sustainable manner possible, the goods, services, and real property that the civilian federal government needs to operate.

For more information about IBM and Smarter Government, please visit ibm.com/smarterplanet/government.

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SOURCE: IBM