Dell, DLT push cloud strategies with new Army BPAs

Two blanket purchase agreements won by Dell Federal Systems and DLT Solutions may lay the ground work for broader adoption of cloud computing solutions.

The BPAs will provide email, collaboration, information sharing and mobile access through commercial cloud services. They are meant for use by organizations that aren’t able to participate in Defense Enterprise Email, which includes portions of the Army Recruiting Command and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Dell Federal is partnering with Microsoft, and will provide a solution that’s based on Microsoft Office 365, while DLT will deliver the Google Apps for Government suite.

A value for the BPAs has not been disclosed.

The two companies will compete for task orders to deliver cloud services to defense agencies, but its impact will be broader than the Defense Department.

For Dell, the BPA is a step in the right direction, said John Fitzgerald, Dell Federal chief technology officer.

A move like this should “give other government organizations the confidence to adopt platforms and solutions that can help them operation more efficiently and effectively,” Fitzgerald said.

“The Army’s tacit approval of government content being hosted on a private, off premise cloud infrastructure should pave the way for additional government organizations to adopt cloud solutions, with email being the tip of the iceberg,” he added.

In order to get the project on its feet, Dell will first “focus on helping user groups migrate to the new service. Part of that will require evangelization on our part to help customers understand how that transition is planned and implemented to minimize risk,” Fitzgerald said.

DLT Solutions’ BPA calls for the company to deliver a Google Apps for Government solution, which the company considers to be “the leading cloud-based productivity suite through our partnership with Google, which allows our customers to connect and get work done from anywhere on any device,” said Brian Strosser, DLT executive vice president of sales.

For DLT, that kind of flexibility is crucial, as many of their government customers are located around the globe.

This BPA is an important win for the company because it expands DLT’s portfolio of cloud-based contracts.

“Our BPA offers customers with modern commercial cloud capabilities to improve collaboration, information sharing and mobile access which enables secure end-to-end communications across their geographic organization,” Stosser said.

It also fits into their overall cloud strategy, he added.

“As far as our company strategy, our goal is to not only simplify the acquisition of cloud-based solutions for the government, but also to ensure that we’re providing those innovative solutions.”

These sorts of BPAs are consistent with market trends of today, as well as most government customers are looking for innovative ideas to drive cost savings and efficiencies without jeopardizing their mission, Stosser said.

And now, thanks in part to these two BPAs, agencies will hopefully realize that the solutions they are seeking are really out there. As Dell’s Fitzgerald said, “creating this first path to the cloud for our customers will not only accelerate the migration of their current environments, but also help pave the way for future services.”