US Census Bureau Awards $500 Million Contract

The US Bureau of Census has awarded a six-year contract, worth approximately $500m, to US technology systems provider Lockheed Martin. The company will be responsible for developing and operating the Decennial Response Integration System (DRIS) to capture data for the 2010 Census.

During the 2000 census, Lockheed Martin developed an information processing system that used scanned image optical character recognition technology to help process data. The requirements for 2010 system are similar, but also include the handling of multiple-channel responses, as respondents will be able to complete census surveys via the Internet. Julie Dunlap, Lockheed Martin's 2010 DRIS Program Director says the new system 'must anticipate the risks and challenges of the future and still achieve the highest data accuracy'.

Lockheed Martin, which has undertaken similar projects in other countries, will use a team of companies including IBM and Pearson Government Solutions to help it deliver the contract. The company is online at www.lockheedmartin.com.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.