IBM Picked to Upgrade Justice's Finance Systems

International Business Machines Corp. won a seven-year contract worth as much as $150 million to modernize and consolidate the Justice Department's financial management and procurement systems, the company plans to announce today.

Under the United Financial Management System contract, which has a base year and six one-year options, the company will combine six systems into one.

"The interfaces and support required to maintain all these disparate systems are daunting," said Richard K. Scott, executive program manager for IBM's federal business consulting services division, based in Bethesda.

"One department-wide system gives us an opportunity to reduce costs because we don't have to have six redundant infrastructures to support our systems," said Lee J. Lofthus, controller and deputy chief financial officer at the Justice Department. "It also improves the timing in which we get our data for our management."

IBM will install components including modules for core accounting/general ledger, financial management reporting, payment management, receivables management, funds management, cost management and procurement. The system will be based on Momentum software from CGI-AMS Inc. of Fairfax.

In addition to standardizing financial management processes, the new system will improve information-sharing throughout the department and allow a department-wide view of budgets and spending. The new system also will have improved security.

The Justice Department will be better able to gather information for outside parties, such as the Office of Management and Budget and Congress, said Angela Carrington, financial management partner in IBM's federal business consulting services division.

The Unified Financial Management System calls for a rollout in phases. The Justice Department's total budget for the project is $200 million.

In addition to CGI-AMS, IBM's teammates on the contract include BEA Systems Inc. of San Jose; BearingPoint Inc. of McLean; Comso Inc. of Greenbelt; Delta Solutions & Technologies Inc. of Herndon; Nortel PEC Solutions Inc. of Fairfax; Unisys Corp. of Blue Bell, Pa.; Codesoft International Inc. of Atlanta; and Collins Consulting Inc. of Schaumberg, Ill.

The contract is the second large award that IBM's federal unit has won in recent weeks. On Dec. 31, the Defense Department issued IBM a contract for up to $270 million over 10 years to provide information technology support for the department's worldwide commissary sales.

IBM will provide services for the Defense Commissary Agency's Commercial Advanced Resale Transaction System, or CARTS, which will replace the commissary's current point-of-sales system.

Roseanne Gerin is a staff writer with Washington Technology. For news on other contracts go tohttp://www.washingtontechnology.com.