PWC wins distance learning pact

eArmyU

The Army has selected Pricewater.houseCoopers to build and maintain a Web-enabled management system for its Distance Learning Program, which will help train up to 1 million soldiers annually in their occupational specialty requirements.

The system, based on commercial products, will provide the foundation for scheduling, managing and delivering Army training. The automated, Web- accessible training and education network is designed to integrate the service's 400 digital training facilities and enable individual soldiers to access training resources in classrooms and at home, said David Dryden, chief of the horizontal program integration division in the program manager's office of the Army Distance Learning Program.

PWC is leading a team of service and software companies to provide software development, integration, system deployment and post-deployment support. "The goal is to provide the government [with] a common system to bring together digital training facilities, existing networks and existing ability under one centralized system that can be managed locally to allow soldiers to receive training anywhere at any time," said Ted Wills, a partner in the firm's Washington, D.C., consulting practice.

The team includes Science Applications International Corp., Saba Software Inc., Remtech Services Inc., ACS Systems & Engineering Inc., and O'Connell and Associates.

The contract is valued at $27 million for eight years. Wills said it will take about 20 months to get the system up and running and another seven or eight months before it's fully fielded. PWC will spend the remainder of the time supporting the system.