State of the $tates

The Massachusetts Information Technology Division has awarded a two-year, $266,000 contract to Comdisco Inc. of Rosemont, Ill., for disaster recovery services. The contract requires the vendor to provide traditional backup services and offsite data storage for two different MVS operating environments.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services has awarded a $209,000 contract to Columbia Ultimate Business Systems of Vancouver, Wash., to install a collection system for use by the reimbursement division. The division bills and collects for an array of services and support provided to individuals with mental illness, chemical dependency, traumatic brain injuries, developmental disabilities, or in need of nursing facility level of care. It also is responsible for the collection of debts owed by businesses such as banks, counties and other governmental agencies. The department will enhance its collection practices by centralizing work from multiple billing systems into one integrated collection system.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation recently awarded a $507,000 contract to AccuWeather Inc. of State College, Pa., for an information kiosk project. The contract requires the vendor to provide hardware, software and integration services for weather information kiosks at sites throughout the state. The project is to provide travelers with weather conditions, forecasts and traffic information at welcome centers and other Department of Transportation locations.

The Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration has awarded a $226,000 contract to Imerge Consulting of Richmond, Va., to perform a detailed analysis of business processes within the department and to provide improvement recommendations. Based on those recommendations, the company will help the state develop a request for proposals for phase 2 of the project. Phase 2 will consist of the design, implementation and roll out of an imaging, work flow, document management and electronic commerce system for the department and state agencies with which it works.

These contract are compiled by Federal Sources Inc.'s state and local division. Federal Sources is a market research firm in McLean, Va.