FEDSIM Awards Largest Information Technology Task Orderto Computer Sciences Corporation

GSA # 9491

June 5, 1998
Contact: Bill Bearden (202) 501-1231

Washington, DC -- The U.S. General Services Administration's Federal Systems Integration and Management Center (FEDSIM), a program of the Federal Technology Service (FTS), has awarded its largest multi-year task order ever to Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) on behalf of its customer, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). This best-value task order was competitively awarded using the FEDSIM Multiple Award Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracting vehicle.

This action provides critical support in managing Agency corporate systems, Year 2000 (Y2K) improvements, headquarters computer operations, and world-wide networks with USAID, FEDSIM, and CSC as partners. Requirements for headquarters and the missions are projected at approximately $65M during the next 24 months. Optional components of the total order offer USAID and its development partners Y2K and other applications services for ongoing Federal bilateral assistance programs. Subject to availability of funds, the ceiling of this task order is $192 million over five years. Agency procedures implementing the Information Technology Management Reform Act (ITMRA) will prioritize and approve specific initiatives in this framework.

FEDSIM's team of contracting and information technology professionals worked closely with USAID to complete technical specifications, procurement documentation, and project deliverables. Using FEDSIM's innovative integration of project support and IDIQ contracting strategies, the USAID task order was awarded in less than 7 weeks after technical requirements were finalized. This technique was responsive to complex requirements identified in a FEDSIM independent review of USAID corporate systems and a demanding implementation schedule. In comparison to other acquisition alternatives USAID had considered, substantial reduction in overall procurement costs resulted from this process, which itself was undertaken as a best practice strategy.

USAID has 7,300 employees worldwide, with 2,000 personnel at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The USAID's field structure is made up of missions and donor/coordinator sites (for a total of 79 locations) in Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, and the Near East as well as Europe and the New Independent States. The FEDSIM task order will provide assistance to USAID in managing a broad range of technology investments in support of the Agency's strategic goals, as called for under the Government Performance and Results Act. FEDSIM's role in USAID's Clinger-Cohen Act implementation is especially focused on integration of business and technical needs by Office of Management and Budget guidelines, selection among alternatives that offer the greatest return on investment, industry best practices in system engineering, and improved cost management through performance based contracting.

The USAID task order is known as the Principal Resource for Information Management Enterprise-wide or the PRIME contract. The functional requirement of the Task Order Request (TOR) will be enterprise-wide integration support, systems engineering, maintenance, modernization, and related services for USAID worldwide. Special emphases in USAID's requirements called for a joint industry/government team to manage systems through their life cycle, improve the productivity of technical efforts, and strengthen the Agency's capacity to perform software acquisition.

For additional information regarding this task order or to discuss the full line of Information Technology services that FEDSIM provides, contact the Director of FEDSIM, Tim McCurdy at (703) 756-6154 or by Internet address TIM.MCCURDY@GSA. GOV.