ATLAS Consortium, Led by HP, Secures Additional Phase of U.K. Ministry of Defence Contract

PALO ALTO, Calif., The ATLAS Consortium, which is led by HP Enterprise Services, today announced the U.K. Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded it an $890 million amendment to its contract to enable improved global collaboration and communication between MoD and its allies.

The amendment, Increment 3a, is the next programmed, critical phase of the Defence Information Infrastructure (DII) contract. ATLAS will provide 42,000 computer terminals operating in the Restricted and Secret domains to the remaining MoD fixed sites, replacing outdated and expensive legacy systems. This improved capability will support some 60,000 personnel, notably within the Royal Air Force, at Joint Helicopter Command and other MoD locations.

DII is the largest defense IT program of its type in the world and is already delivering operational benefits to the U.K.’s front-line troops and to the wider MoD. When delivered in full, DII will provide enhanced capabilities to around 300,000 users at some 2,000 locations worldwide.

“It is critical to national defense that the MoD and its allies have highly secure and real-time global access to the information they need,” said Huw Owen, chief executive officer, ATLAS Consortium and vice president, HP Enterprise Services Defense and Security – U.K. “This latest contract enhancement sends the market a strong message about the trust that the MoD places in ATLAS to deliver this critical capability, which is fundamental to realizing the MoD’s strategic requirement for a single, integrated information infrastructure.”

DII will enable many of the cost management and efficiency measures required under the U.K. Defence Change Program. These measures are to be achieved by extending into the Deployed operational space, interfacing with Battlespace systems and improving shared information between headquarters, battlefield support and the front line.

The ATLAS Consortium is responsible for delivering the DII Program. ATLAS is led by HP Enterprise Services and includes tier-one partner Fujitsu and partners EADS Defence and Security Systems, General Dynamics, and Logica.

Note to editors: The Ministry of Defence has a requirement for a highly secure, pan-Defense information technology environment ready to meet the challenges faced by Defense. This is an essential capability to support success of operations and to conduct day-to-day business. In 2000, the MoD began developing plans to replace many diverse systems with a single infrastructure to enable more effective communication and more efficient ways of working and to obtain better value for money. In March 2005, the MoD signed a contract with the ATLAS Consortium for the installation and management of this new infrastructure, known as the Defence Information Infrastructure Program. The contract will run until 2015.