The Standard Procurement System
Encyclopedia
The Standard Procurement System (SPS) is a software suite providing front-office business services to Acquisition professionals in the United States Department of Defense
.
The Standard Procurement System initiative began in 1994 with a directive from the Director of Defense Procurement to standardize the then approximately 70 acquisition systems in use on a single platform. In August 1996, the SPS contract was awarded through a competitive process to American Management Systems
(now CACI
). The contract directed AMS to build the Standard Procurement System through an incremental process on top of the company's existing Procurement Desktop - Defense (PD2) application.
SPS is one of the first DoD software acquisitions using Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12 - Acquisition of Commercial Items rules. One of the major drivers behind SPS was the use of Commercial off-the-shelf
, or COTS
, software. The software is licensed rather than purchased outright, and at the time marked a major shift in acquisition strategy for DoD. While DoD had previous experience in licensing software, it largely revolved around either desktop computing (operating systems, office automation
products, etc.) or back-end servers (mainframe
operating systems, relational database management systems, etc.). SPS is a business system and is licensed for 43,000 contracting officers and other acquisition professionals at DoD sites world-wide.
The deployment of SPS met with several challenges, including a stop-development order in 2002 from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO). The program resumed after establishing an internal requirements board, automating its integration capabilities, improving product documentation, and implementing a shift from a client-server architecture to a Web application architecture.
The SPS program has received several awards, including the Top Fed 100 award from Federal Computer Week (2003), the Grace Hopper Technology Leadership Award (2003), and CIO Magazine's CIO Enterprise Value Award (2005).
To date, SPS has been deployed on more than 23,000 desktops worldwide, and processed more than $131 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2006, up from $59.0 billion in FY 2004
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
.
Program History
SPS is an outgrowth of the DoD Corporate Information Management (CIM) initiatives in the early 1990s, and is intended to provide standard business processes and data management across disparate acquisition communities, including:- Posts, camps, and stations
- Inventory Control Points
- Major Weapon Systems
- Contingency contracting
The Standard Procurement System initiative began in 1994 with a directive from the Director of Defense Procurement to standardize the then approximately 70 acquisition systems in use on a single platform. In August 1996, the SPS contract was awarded through a competitive process to American Management Systems
American Management Systems
American Management Systems was a high technology and management consulting firm, founded in 1970 by a group of five former Defense Department officials who had worked under Robert McNamara in the Kennedy and Johnson administration...
(now CACI
CACI
CACI International Inc is a professional services and information technology company headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. CACI is a member of the Fortune 1000 Largest Companies and the Russell 2000 index. The company has approximately 13,700 employees in over 120 offices in the U.S. and...
). The contract directed AMS to build the Standard Procurement System through an incremental process on top of the company's existing Procurement Desktop - Defense (PD2) application.
SPS is one of the first DoD software acquisitions using Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12 - Acquisition of Commercial Items rules. One of the major drivers behind SPS was the use of Commercial off-the-shelf
Commercial off-the-shelf
In the United States, Commercially available Off-The-Shelf is a Federal Acquisition Regulation term defining a nondevelopmental item of supply that is both commercial and sold in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace, and that can be procured or utilized under government contract...
, or COTS
COTS
COTS may refer to:* Commercial off-the-shelf, ready-made products* Commercial Orbital Transportation Services, a program for delivery to space* Crest of the Stars, a manga/anime space opera.* Crown-of-thorns starfish, a reef-coral predator...
, software. The software is licensed rather than purchased outright, and at the time marked a major shift in acquisition strategy for DoD. While DoD had previous experience in licensing software, it largely revolved around either desktop computing (operating systems, office automation
Office Automation
Office automation refers to the varied computer machinery and software used to digitally create, collect, store, manipulate, and relay office information needed for accomplishing basic tasks. Raw data storage, electronic transfer, and the management of electronic business information comprise the...
products, etc.) or back-end servers (mainframe
Mainframe computer
Mainframes are powerful computers used primarily by corporate and governmental organizations for critical applications, bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and financial transaction processing.The term originally referred to the...
operating systems, relational database management systems, etc.). SPS is a business system and is licensed for 43,000 contracting officers and other acquisition professionals at DoD sites world-wide.
The deployment of SPS met with several challenges, including a stop-development order in 2002 from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO). The program resumed after establishing an internal requirements board, automating its integration capabilities, improving product documentation, and implementing a shift from a client-server architecture to a Web application architecture.
The SPS program has received several awards, including the Top Fed 100 award from Federal Computer Week (2003), the Grace Hopper Technology Leadership Award (2003), and CIO Magazine's CIO Enterprise Value Award (2005).
To date, SPS has been deployed on more than 23,000 desktops worldwide, and processed more than $131 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2006, up from $59.0 billion in FY 2004