It's only been two years since the Navy awarded the long-awaited contract to transition IT services from the Navy Marine Corps Intranet to the Next Generation Enterprise Network, but officials are looking to stay ahead of the curve.
The NGEN contract awarded in June 2013 for $3.5 billion to incumbent operator HP is up for re-compete in 2018, but the first of two requests for information can be expected as early as July, according to Navy officials.
Speaking as part a panel of Navy Program Executive Office-Enterprise Information Systems panel May 14 at AFCEA's Naval IT Day, Phil Anderson, deputy program manager for Naval Enterprise Networks outlined some of the early plans to prepare for upcoming NGEN contract action.
"We've just started putting the teams and activities and plan together for the NGEN re-compete. We're starting early with the interaction with [industry]…we're going to be having industry days so we can figure out all the ways to do this," Anderson said. "There was a lot of, 'here's the information we have and as industry you're welcome to look at it'…but really what we want to know is, as we look at this big network that changes a lot with a lot of services and activities, there has to be some input for us we can use."
With preparation under way, Navy officials will be taking a close look at fit, scale, compatibility, flexibility and maturity for the future of NGEN. But in particular Navy officials are looking to improve on how they interface with industry and incorporate commercial ideas and approaches into the eventual request for proposals.
The Navy also will be targeting the integration of cloud capabilities, data center consolidation and a shorter transition time, officials said.
