Management Toolkit

Two firms withdraw from ID card procurement

Kablenet.com

Published: 24 Jan 2008 14:09 GMT

BAE Systems and Accenture have withdrawn from discussions on the procurement framework for the National Identity Scheme.

A spokesperson for the Identity and Passport Service, which is managing the scheme, confirmed to GC News that the two companies had dropped out of the process, saying it was "part of the competitive dialogue".

This has reduced the number of companies in the field to six: CSC, EDS, Fujitsu, IBM, Steria and Thales.

"Competitive dialogue for the National Identity Scheme framework procurement is continuing apace," the spokesperson said. "We're now where we wanted to be on the timeline set out in the framework prospectus in August. We look forward to issuing formal invitations to tender in March, and to awarding the framework contract to approximately five potential suppliers in May."

The companies that win places on the framework will agree to common contract terms and be able to take part in a series of mini-competitions to supply different elements of the scheme. The spokesperson said the first of these should begin soon after the framework contracts are signed.

The first two projects with approval to proceed are:

The replacement of core application and enrolment processes for passports and the provision of desktop infrastructure for IPS
The replacement and upgrading of the existing systems for fingerprint matching and storage in connection with immigration and visa requirements