smartAccording to an April 11 Request for Information (RFI), the FBI’s Information Technology Supplies and Support Services Contract (FBI IT SSS) has dropped in ceiling value from $30B to $5B. This huge whopping drop is likely because the FBI is pursuing a paradigm shift to Cloud computing in a separate contract.

Interest in this recompete had previously been keen, both because of its high-dollar figure, and the number of expected awardees. The original contract was a boon to 46 different firms. These ranged from Accenture to World Wide Technology, Inc., and each came away with at least one TO weighing in at a minimum of $132M.

With the large drop in ceiling, any interested party will certainly want to register for the industry day ASAP.

The FBI provided a detailed schedule on April 12. Key dates include the following:

  1. Industry Day – April 30 – must register by 4:00 PM April 20
  2. DRFP – July 13
  3. RFP – August 17 with a 6-week turn

The apparent paradigm shift explains why the FBI’s been huddling about the requirement specifics; and the contracting office has let it be known that inquiries concerning this effort are not, at present, welcome.

If the reduced contract ceiling sticks, then what had been one of the largest contracts in the industry will be reduced by 83%. And there will be a major scrap between vendors to retain or win a toehold on a greatly diminished contract. Or a few smart vendors may find a way to play on a winning Cloud computing team.