Dell Computer today announced that the U.S. Marine Corps will acquire more than 60,000 of its systems. The deal, one of the largest acquisitions of computers ever by the Marine Corps, involves leasing about 30,000 Dell OptiPlex desktop and a similar number of Dell Latitude notebook computers.
The new systems will allow the Marines to begin replacing aging computers while the service awaits the arrival of an updated information technology infrastructure, Navy Marine Corps Intranet (NMCI).
NMCI, a $6.9 billion re-engineering project which will create one network for all of the Navy and Marine Corps’ shore-based facilities, is due to begin next year. It will replace legacy systems, and slash the number of applications the Marine Corps uses by 90%, to about 400.
Working in conjunction with EDS, the prime contractor for NMCI, the Marines will be able to integrate systems delivered now into the NMCI program.
As part of the deal, Dell will install the systems on-site, transfer the existing data from the old computers to the new ones, and remove the old systems. The company is also providing 4-hour service for the desktop systems and will repair or replace the notebook systems if they are accidentally damaged.