DOD issues $223M contract to support next-gen voice services on military bases

Telecommunications contractor Lumen has scored a $223 million task order to support the Defense Department’s adoption of modernized digital voice and audio services at military bases across the U.S. and abroad.

Through the contract, Lumen will provide the Defense Information Systems Agency with hybrid cloud-enabled Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and unified communications services that will “enable more than 250,000 concurrent connections to DISA’s voice cloud system,” the company said in a release.

The modernized VoIP communications services are more secure and resilient while allowing the DOD workforce more flexibility, Lumen states, noting that the cloud data centers used to power the services are approved at DOD IL-5 to support controlled unclassified information.

The new services will also support the DOD’s transition to a next-generation 911 (NG911) platform — which in the future could include the use of pictures and videos in addition to voice — at U.S. military bases across the world.

Lumen will work with Tyto Government Solutions, Inc. as a subcontractor.

The award comes after Lumen in November announced that it won a $1.5 billion contract to support U.S. Indo-Pacific Command’s network transport.

The new deal was awarded under the federal government’s $50 billion Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract, which drives federal agencies to modernize their IT and telecom infrastructure. It comes with a one-year base, three one-year options and the potential for a six-month extension.