EDS Navy, Marine intranet project gets green light

EDS has confirmed that the Department of Defense (DOD) has formally authorised the Department of the Navy (DON) to move all currently ordered seats to the Navy Marine Corps Intranet (NMCI) and to order an additional 150 000 seats.

The formal DOD authorisations enable the following to occur:

* EDS can begin transferring, or "cutting over," all 160 000 currently authorised seats - as well as any subsequent seats that are authorised - to the NMCI. Congress and the DOD had to date limited the initial NMCI deployment to no more than 160 000 seat orders, of which only 60 000 could be moved to the NMCI environment. The DOD has now authorised the DON to lift the 60 000 cap based on NMCI`s successful completion of the Navy`s operational assessment, including testing conducted by the Navy NMCI Director`s staff and several independent testing agencies to prove the viability and scalability of the network.

* The DON can order 150 000 additional seats for EDS to begin managing and ultimately transfer to the network. As a result of this authorisation, which the DOD based on EDS`s demonstrated ability to meet service level agreements on 20 000 seats, the DON is now authorised to nearly double the number of current seat orders to 310 000.

"The results from four months of testing clearly demonstrated that the NMCI is ready to move to the next level," said Rear Admiral Charles L Munns, director, Navy Marine Corps Intranet. "These authorisations mark major milestones in the progress of the NMCI programme. We are pleased with the decisions and will move forward with additional deployment."

The NMCI is a comprehensive, enterprise-wide initiative to make the full range of network-based information services available to sailors and Marines for day-to-day activities and in war. NMCI will give the Navy and Marine Corps secure, universal access to integrated voice, video and data communications; afford pier-side connectivity to Navy vessels in port; and link over 300 000 desktops across the US and in Puerto Rico, Japan and Cuba.

The term "cutover" describes the point at which NMCI network users receive new desktop computers, operating systems and software and are connected to the full network services of the new intranet, including access to the legacy applications that resided on their previous workstations.

"The NMCI completed a very robust set of testing, and the results are indicative of the viability of the network," said Al Edmonds, president of EDS US Government Solutions. "EDS and the Information Strike Force have met every challenge thus far in creating a first-of-its-kind network within this strict security environment. It has been a tremendous team effort. The NMCI is moving forward and we continue to make steady progress."

In a related move, EDS announced Vincent Madsen, a 24-year EDS veteran and former president of EDS` Asia-Pacific delivery organisation, has been appointed client delivery executive for the NMCI programme. Madsen will assume responsibility for the central NMCI infrastructure, and the delivery and deployment of products and services at Navy and Marine Corps bases worldwide to ensure seamless, integrated NMCI delivery across the DON.

Bill Richard continues to serve as EDS`s NMCI enterprise client executive with overall programme responsibility.

"The addition of Vinnie Madsen brings EDS`s full power and capabilities to the Navy Marine Corps Intranet," said Edmonds. "EDS has significant responsibility to NMCI during these times of heightened tension across the globe, and we are committed to ensuring that the men and women of our armed forces receive the best service EDS has to offer."