Army taps GD for command system support

General Dynamics C4 Systems will provide contractor support and engineering services for the Army's Command Post of the Future.

The indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract has a potential value of $200 million over five years. The Army's first order under the contract is worth $18.4 million.

The Command Post is part of the Army's Battle Command System. It enables commanders and their staffs to plan, prepare, rehearse, execute and assess operations over tactical networks from far-flung locations. One CPOF system can support more than 300 simultaneous users.

The Army's Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications, Tactical of Fort Monmouth, N.J., manages the system. The military has more than 1,000 such systems in use already.

The system gives soldiers in the battlefield a quick and accurate understanding of the commander's intent, said Manny Mora, vice president of battle management for General Dynamics C4 Systems. "This contract, combined with phenomenal user acceptance, brings CPOF one step closer to being fielded to the entire Army," he said.

General Dynamics C4 Systems is a business unit of General Dynamics Corp. of Falls Church, Va.

The parent company ranks No. 7 on Washington Technology's 2007 Top 100 list of the largest federal government prime contractors.