Groove to ink deals for knowledge management software

Groove Networks Inc. this week will announce two contracts for its Grove Virtual Office software, the company said.

The Army Corps of Engineers will spend $4.1 million on a multiyear contract to use the software in its Knowledge Management Environment. In addition, under a $1.2 million deal, the Army will use Groove software in its Battle Command Knowledge System.

In both cases, Groove's Virtual Office collaboration software will work alongside software from Quebec, Canada-based Tomoye Corp.

Tomoye's Simplify software provides a software architecture to establish communities of practice where knowledge can be shared. Groove's Virtual Office allows for secure, cross-organizational communication and collaboration.

"Right now, the Corps is actively engaged with its day-to-day responsibilities, along with our added mission of supporting Iraq and Afghanistan reconstruction," said Wil Berrios, the chief information officer for the Army Corps of Engineers. "No matter how stretched we are, we must always remain at a high state of readiness so we can respond to any situation." He said Groove and Tomoye software will allow engineers to work together regardless of their location.

The Battle Command Knowledge System is being built to give the Army an online tool for collecting and sharing experiences and lessons learned. Groove Virtual Office will be used to support the Army's virtual action teams; Tomoye Simplify is for structured professional forums.

"The Army's strategy to support teams and capture knowledge at the edges of the organization and then accelerate the transfer of that information throughout the organization is highly advanced," said David Scult, Groove Networks' senior vice president of sales.

Beverly, Mass.-based Groove Networks recently released version 3 of its Virtual Office software. The application is a major component of the Homeland Security Information Network.