DLA plans to release RFQ for outsourcing

The Defense Logistics Agency next week plans to release a request for quotations on a desktop outsourcing solution for the agency.

Carla von Bernewitz, chief information officer at DLA, said Monday at the Industry Advisory Council's Executive Leadership Conference in Richmond, Va., that the agency is considering purchasing outsourcing services from the General Services Administration information technology schedule.

DLA recently completed a total cost of ownership study to get a better feel for what the agency's costs are, but von Bernewitz said cost cutting is not the chief reason the agency is looking at outsourcing its desktop maintenance and help desk. She said the main objective will be to increase worker productivity and performance. Some of these improvements will come from standardizing the technology used throughout the organization, she said.

Although many agencies are looking at the GSA Federal Technology Service's Seat Management contract or the Outsourcing Desktop Initiative for NASA for these services, DLA will be using schedule vendors, von Bernewitz said. She said many of the IT functions and resources the agency uses are run by other Defense Department organizations, and the schedule provides more flexibility than the other contracts to accommodate DLA's varied needs.