Unisys Wins Cloud Computing Contract with US Department of Agriculture

Nearshore IT services provider Unisys has a landed a cloud computing contract worth US$232 million with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rural development agency (USDARD).
This is the second major contract Unisys has won from the U.S. federal government this month, after agreeing to build a cloud-based email service platform for the Comptroller of the Currency, a unit of the Treasury Department.
Unisys won the contract following a competitive bid process, but has performed similar work with the USDARD under a previous contract awarded in 2010.
The new contract will see Unisys provide secure application modernization services to support initiatives such as the agency’s Rural Development Comprehensive Loan Program (CLP).
The contract covers all aspects of application modernization, maintenance and operations to support the agency’s mission. Unisys says it will overhaul the IT system for the agency to integrate disparate applications across multiple computing platforms.
Aside from the technology services for the disbursement of loans, Unisys will shoulder the responsibilities of protecting the personal information of loan applicants. For this fiscal year, USDARD has a portfolio of US$212 billion in loans to manage and it will administer US$38 billion in loans, loan guarantees, and grants.
The U.S. federal government is increasingly choosing cloud services over on-premise options in an apparent bid to reduce its infrastructure footprint.
“This program will help the agency develop and maintain software systems needed for the essential loans and grants to help improve the economy and quality of life in rural America,” said Casey Coleman, group vice president for civilian agencies at Unisys Federal, in a statement.