Standard Procurement System provides a basis for Department-wide business intelligence
San Jose, CA — April 5, 2004 — Business intelligence provider Business Objects has entered into a licensing agreement with American Management Systems Inc., a global business and IT consulting firm, to provide an upgraded business intelligence solution to the U.S. Department of Defense Standard Procurement System (SPS) Program Office.
Part of Increment 3, the next major release in the SPS project, the joint solution will enable the Department of Defense (DoD) and the armed services to obtain the services, supplies and materials necessary to uphold national security. When SPS is fully deployed, the DoD said it expects to save more than $395 million annually.
The Business Objects business intelligence solution will be implemented first as part of the upgrade to the new Web-based Increment 3 architecture of SPS, which handles more than $48 billion in goods and services each year. The DoD will then migrate the current 23,000 users from its existing business intelligence solution to Business Objects. The Web-based query and analysis solution from Business Objects, based on WebIntelligence, will help expand the usage of SPS to more than 40,000 users.
"The Standard Procurement System is the first, and only, Department-wide standardized business solution and serves as the cornerstone of the DoD's acquisition domain," said Gino Magnifico, deputy program manager for SPS. "With Increment 3, users will be able to identify logistical needs earlier, use strategic purchasing patterns to reduce costs and use procurement data to make better business decisions Department-wide."
SPS is a Project Office in the Army's Program Executive Office, Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS), which develops, deploys and acquires information technology systems and communications for the DoD. "I am looking forward to seeing SPS fully deployed to allow the DoD to realize the benefits of true seamless integration between logistics, procurement and financial management systems," said Kevin Carroll, program executive officer of PEO EIS.
SPS provides an automated contracting system that standardizes procurement processes across the Department of Defense. The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and 13 other U.S. defense agencies all use SPS. The system has established the framework necessary for senior leadership to use business intelligence solutions to make better procurement decisions — improving readiness, supplier management and overall financial management.
"The Business Objects BI solution will enable the DoD to make better procurement decisions by allowing users to more easily access and analyze data from across multiple financial, logistics, procurement and other legacy systems," said Greg Lorden, vice president of Government for Business Objects. "Business Objects was chosen for this project based on our ability to assist those that support the Warfighter, and through results from deployments in other areas of the DoD."
