DOD proposes $8B cloud email contract

The Defense Department's massive JEDI contract isn't the only multi-billion dollar cloud contract DOD is developing.

DOD this week released a draft solicitation for the Defense Enterprise Office Solution contract to acquire cloud-based email and calendaring services.

Comments and questions are due May 7. The contract is expected to be a single award and a final request for proposals is expected by the end of May.

The email services will serve 3.5 million users and will be used across the classified and unclassified networks known respectively as "NIPRNet" and "SIPRNet."

It also will need to reach into disconnected and limited bandwidth environments such as those found on the battlefield.

The draft RFP describes 10 task areas:

• NIPRNet environment
• SIPRNet environment
• Denied, disconnected, intermittent, limited bandwidth environment
• User tenancy standup
• Subscription licenses
• Additional supporting infrastructure, integration points and services
• Data and readiness assessments
• User and data migration
• Training
• Engineering support

This is a new contract so there is no single incumbent to defend the work. Instead, the current calendar and email service is operated by the government with support from several different contractors.

DISA is proposing a two-step, full-and-open competition.

In step one, technical approaches will be judge as “acceptable” or “unacceptable.” Unacceptable approaches will not move to step 2.

In step two, proposals will be evaluated under a best value criteria that looks at the technical approach, price and past performance. Technical approach is most important, followed by price and then past-performance. Technical approach and past performance together are more important than price.

Just like the Defense Department’s Joint Enterprise Infrastructure Initiative or "JEDI", DEOS is part of DOD’s initiative to move more functions to the commercial cloud. JEDI also is expected to be a single-award.

DEOS is slated to have a five-year base and then five one year options.

It also will start with a bang. The first task order likely will be for 1.5 million users, according to the solicitation documents.