Homeland Security Plum Island Officials Award New Contract to Field Support Services, Inc.

Release Date: 12/10/03 00:00:00

For Immediate Release
Plum Island Animal Disease Center
December 10, 2003

The Plum Island Animal Disease Center announced today the award of the new operations contract to Field Support Services, Inc. (FSSI) as a major milestone toward continued operations and maintenance improvements of the facility, with an emphasis on security.

Under the agreement, FSSI will receive an estimated $12 million per year for a five-year term that includes a base year and four one-year options which allows the Department to replace the contractor if performance measures are not met annually. Services provided by FSSI will include power plant operations, water and wastewater management, building engineering, environmental operations, and operation of the fleet of marine vessels and motor vehicles. In addition, FSSI will support the facilities information services such as voice and data communications.

"The Department views Plum Island as a critical national asset that provides vital research and support to emergency operations to protect the nation's agriculture from intentional or unintentional outbreaks of foreign animal diseases," said Maureen McCarthy, director, Office of Research and Development. "The decision to seek a new contractor was a critical step toward ensuring that the facility personnel and the surrounding community have confidence that DHS is providing a safe and secure work environment to meet the critical mission of DHS and U.S. Department of Agriculture."  

As part of the contract negotiations, FSSI, a subsidiary of Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, headquartered in Barrow, Alaska, agreed to implement a safety management program that integrates safety measures in the daily work activities of the facilities employees by implementing strict security procedures and meeting international standards for management systems. Other immediate organizational commitments include retaining current staff, improving equity in salary and benefits for employees, and meeting high standards in labor relations.

"We are pleased to have awarded this contract to Field Support Services, Inc." said Tom Sheridan, deputy director for operations, Plum Island Animal Disease Center.  "They have a demonstrated record of reliable support to several other federal sites and emphasize safety and security as a significant element in their contracts.  The contract award is in keeping with the presidential initiative to streamline the federal processes to save resources, leverage an existing contract vehicle managed by a federal agency partner, and ensure a performance based award to a pre-qualified contractor who already has a proven track record for this type of support."

The U.S. Department Homeland Security's Office of Science and Technology serves as the primary research and development arm of the Department, utilizing our nation's scientific and technological resources to provide federal, state and local officials with the technology and capabilities to protect the homeland.  On June 1, 2003, Plum Island Animal Disease Center transitioned to the Department's Office of Science and Technology to focus on protecting the nation from agricultural terrorism. Plum Island scientists conduct research to protect the health of livestock on farms across America from high-consequence foreign animal diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease.

This page was last modified on 12/10/03 00:00:00