Defense Logistics Agency awards mega tech contract

The Defense Logistics Agency awarded nearly $400 million in contract services Monday to upgrade its legacy computer systems.

Andersen Consulting, of Reston, Va., will help the agency put in place key aspects of its Business Systems Modernization program, a plan introduced in July of 1998 to replace legacy computer systems with current technologies.

"This effort will provide us with the necessary leading edge technology to allow us to focus on our core business: supply chain management," said Rear Admiral Ray Archer, vice director of DLA.

Under the deal, Andersen will receive up to $389.8 million for implementation services, software liscenses, software maintenance and training. DLA will use commercial off-the-shelf software, including SAP's enterprise resource planning software and Manugistics' advance planning and scheduling programs.

The technology replacement will be piecemeal, beginning in September with a task order for a blueprint of the new system, and is expected to take place over a five-year period.

The two major legacy systems being replaced, SAMMS (Standard Automated Material Management System) and DISMS (Defense Integrated Subsistence Management System), are the primary logistics systems for repair parts, industrial and general supplies, electronics and construction parts, clothing and textile, and food for all military services.

In February of this year, DLA announced a plan to restructure its remaining operations to strengthen top-level control of the agency. DLA is also conducting a host of public-private competitions that may lead to the outsourcing of several DLA depots.