DLA looks to HP to manage IT

Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) officials took the first step to improving the management of the agency's computer infrastructure earlier this month by awarding Hewlett-Packard Co. a contract potentially worth $290 million.

DLA officials awarded the five-year,

$20 million contract Sept. 13. HP will consolidate DLA's disparate, global office system structure into a coherent, regional one with network hubs in the United States, Europe and the Pacific Rim.

Agency officials operate more than 2,600 servers, many running older proprietary applications. They want the company to install new hardware and use commercial software to increase efficiency and savings and reduce the agency's technology inventory.

The Enterprise Data Center program also includes a significant information assurance component consisting of more effectively implementing computer security programs across DLA and expanding its disaster recovery and continuity-of-operations capabilities.

With the center, DLA officials are taking a huge step forward for the agency, the Defense Department, the government and, ultimately, the taxpayers, said Mark Philip, the agency's program manager for the

initiative.

Philip described the center as a significant information technology effort. DLA officials hope the program will help agency leaders achieve their mission goals.

By hiring a single vendor to operate the agency's networks, DLA officials can focus on their core competency: logistics support to the military, said Bob Guerra, a partner in the Washington, D.C., IT consulting firm Guerra, Kiviat, Flyzik and Associates Inc.

DLA officials order and deliver nearly every consumable item for every military function — from combat readiness to emergency preparedness to day-to-day

operations.

DLA officials said HP brings "broad experience in IT migration and hosting." An HP official said the company looks forward to helping DLA officials better manage their IT assets.

DLA "is committed to being on the leading edge in terms of integrating their systems, data, processes and people, providing secure access to people on the go and, ultimately, transforming their processes and IT to better serve the needs of their customers," said James Weynand, vice president and general manager of HP's Americas, Public Sector, Health and Education Business Unit.

HP officials must deploy an initial Enterprise Data Center network infrastructure at several DLA sites by February 2005 and a fully operational network for the entire agency by August 2006.

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IT rollout

Defense Logistics Agency officials hope to improve operations and save money by consolidating older hardware and software and installing new information technology products. Here's the timeline:

February 2005: DLA officials plan to deploy an initial network infrastructure with host and support services at the Defense Energy Support Center, the Defense Logistics Information Service and the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service.

August 2006: Officials will launch a fully operational network for the entire agency.