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DHS awards large express delivery contract
The Homeland Security Department has awarded a contract to DHL, the express shipping company, that could be worth up to $60 million over the next five years.
The award was made as part of Homeland Security's strategic sourcing initiative, which involves leveraging the department's buying power to get better deals. In May, the Office of Management and Budget announced a new rule that requires agencies to choose three commodities to purchase through strategic sourcing by October.
Under the new contract, DHL will handle all pickups of letters and small packages for all parts of DHS, including the Customs and Border Protection bureau and the Transportation Security Administration, for delivery to destinations around the world. Previously, multiple companies handled the department's shipping needs.
In addition to providing delivery, the contract also requires DHL to maintain a database that tracks how much Homeland Security spends on shipping and where packages go.
The contract was awarded late Tuesday after a full and open competition between multiple companies. The department will pay DHL between $250,000 and $60 million over the next five years, based on its use of DHL services, said DHS spokesman Larry Orluskie.
"We decide how much we're going to spend based on our needs," said Orluskie.
The contract specifies competitive rates for delivery and will go into effect over the next month, Orluskie said.
Homeland Security has been aggressively pursuing strategic sourcing over the last several years and has set up several commodity councils to examine various products and explore how to buy them more efficiently. Current councils include those for handguns and boats. Customs and Border Protection unveiled a new strategic sourcing strategy in mid-June.
Robert Mintz, a spokesman for DHL, said, "We're extremely pleased that we're able to support the Department of Homeland Security." He said DHL has contracts with other agencies as well, including Defense.
COMMENTS
- As a postal employee this is another slap in our face from our own government. Since DHL delivers a large part of their parcels to the local post office in each town they deliver in and we the postal employees have to deliver them to the customer. Also USPS is a trusted enity of ppl in the USA so why would they give this contract to a new company that has no track record of service? kathy miyamura Posted July 2, 2005 10:13 PM
- This is a little off the subject but I am taken by the idea of "strategic buying power to get better deals". That sure sounds like a great idea. Do you think it would work for RX's in Medicare and how about that same idea for civil servants when OPM negotiates with Health insurance companies. Oh well, it sounded like a good idea, we will never do that for our people. It probably only works for DHS. GovExec.com reader Posted July 1, 2005 7:14 AM
