Page 6 - Federal Computer Week, May/June 2019

ITES-3H Contract Profile
Package or Piecemeal?
To some buyers, ITES-3H looks like a pick-and-choose buffet.
The U.S. Army and other military services have elevated modernization of IT infrastructure in recent years, making it a central component of plans to simultaneously fight wars on multiple fronts. The military’s IT leadership envisioned that the third iteration of
the Information Technology Enterprise Solutions – 3 Hardware (ITES-3H) would go a long way toward supporting those ambitious IT-enabled capabilities.
“There are agencies that understand what the contract offers, and use it effectively” to procure solutions, says Sheryl McCurnin, senior manager for federal programs at CDW·G. “Other agencies are gradually becoming aware and are realizing the scope of what the contract has to offer.”
There are still agencies that have not embraced the solutions aspect of the contract. A lot of that is due to “years and years of doing it just one way,” says Kim Giannini, the company’s sales manager for Army. Out of habit, procurement professionals operate with preconceived notions. When buyers are unclear about which solutions are eligible for purchase, CDW·G will provide a contract primer to inform potential buyers of what’s in the vehicle.
The big picture
The $5 billion, five-year ID/IQ ITES- 3H is a mandatory-use vehicle for the Army. It provides a wide range
of commercial high-speed reduced instruction set computer (RISC)
and explicitly parallel instruction computing (EPIC) servers, Windows- based servers, desktop computers, notebooks, workstations, printers and peripherals. Buyers can also acquire storage systems and networking products from the contract.
included services used to integrate products into the Army’s existing IT infrastructure.
ITES-3H shifted the focus. Instead of products, it seeks to provide a total solutions package, including integration and other services.
The ITES-3H contract includes “items that are for the fielding of
a complete system, or as part of
a complete system, or as part of the total design solution for all equipment items provided on the contract,” according to the ITES-3H statement of work.
Services used in these ITES-3H solutions are distinct from those offered under ITES-3S, which was awarded in September 2018. That contract offers commercial services charged on a time-and-material basis, while those under ITES-3H are charged as fixed-price. ITES- 3H items include “as a Service” offerings, such as managed print services and storage.
ITES-3H also includes travel that’s needed to acquire and field solutions, yet another feature that “customers are realizing as a benefit to procuring the full solution using the contract,” McCurnin says.
ITES-3H AT A GLANCE
• Five-yearperformance period ending Feb. 21, 2021
• $5 billion program ceiling
• Open to Army, Defense Department and federal agencies
• 17 contracts awarded (eight small business, nine large)
• Nofee
The confusion among buyers who used the ITES-2H contract is understandable. ITES-2H was primarily a products contract that
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