Tech Data Bolsters Federal Services

According to the requirements of SEWP-IV, short for Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement, contractors must prepare a material inspection and receiving report, also called a DD Form 250, at the time of each delivery of supplies or services. The form documents the inspection and acceptance of the products, payment receipt when applicable and delivery date. Typically, solution providers have to receive all shipments from the manufacturer, add the prepared form, and reship to NASA. By handing that requirement over to Tech Data, resellers can improve delivery dates by drop-shipping orders at the customer site.

"People will be able to sell, rather than be tied up with the logistics of form [creation] and assembly," says Barb Miller, vice president of government, technical and integration services at Tech Data. The distributor will offer the service to the 30 customer resellers that were awarded SEWP-IV. "We are trying to give back time, money, and capacity."

Further contributing to that effort is Tech Data's new government integration team, which combines market expertise and technical capabilities to create full solutions that meet the standards of the federal customer. Resellers can have hardware preloaded and configured with software applications that meet specific end-user requirements -- whether it's for a basic desktop or a multi-server rack system. Pricing runs from $20 to $40 per configuration.

Utilizing Tech Data Government Integration Services enables resellers to drop-ship fully configured solutions to government agencies nationwide, saving time and enabling them to focus resources on on-site installations. "If [reseller] needs a server with a specific image for the Department of Homeland Security or FBI, with certain security installed with biometrics, we assemble all of that in our facility and ship to the government end user with the resellers logo," Miller says. "We save them time because it goes straight out of the warehouse to the customer."