IBM bags 10-year $576m US defence contract
The US Defense Microelectronics Activity (DMEA) has handed IBM an up-to-10 year USD 576 million contract to consult on the purchase of chips for the military.
The DMEA has to do due diligence when it is buying microelectronics in the commercial market. It says it requires "an evidence-based trusted enclave for manufacturing" as part of the Trusted Foundry Access III program. This is the basis for its contract with IBM.
The DMEA has administered the program since 2003 and is responsible for sourcing cost effective and trusted access to critical microelectronics for the US government. IBM says the work will be performed at its semiconductor fabrication facilities in Burlington, Vermont; East Fishkill, New York; Malta, New York; and Bromont, Canada and also at DMEA McClellan, California,
In other news, IBM has also confirmed it has acquired Bulgarian-founded, US-headquartered network and IT infrastructure automation provider Pliant. The move will expand IBM's software portfolio into the areas of network infrastructure observability, connectivity, control and automation across hybrid cloud environments.
Pliant's solutions, available as both client-managed software and software-as-a-service, align with IBM's concept of taking tools and services to a wider range of developers and engineers.
