The Certified Product Sales and Support (CPSS) program is an alternative to the traditional procurement for the development of IA equipment. The program encourages the availability of IA products with relatively limited impact on NSA's IA resources. The CPSS authorizes qualified vendors to manufacture quantities above the originally contracted amount and to directly market and sell the additional equipment to U.S. Government departments, agencies, and other qualified purchasers. A CPSS agreement is entered into between NSA and a vendor when:
- An IA vendor, under contract to NSA for the production of IA equipment, wants to produce more equipment than the quantity specified in the contract;
- An IA vendor of a certified product desires to contract with a qualified company, other than the manufacturer, to market, install, and maintain an IA product that has already received U.S. Government approval; or
- NSA authorizes an IA vendor of a certified product produced under another agency's or department's contract to sell the equipment directly to qualified customers following testing and endorsement of the equipment by NSA.