GAITHERSBURG, MD - Mercury Associates, Inc.,  an independent fleet management consulting firm, announced that the U.S. General Services Administration's Office of Governmentwide Policy has awarded the company a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) for services to support Federal agencies in fulfilling the requirements of Presidential Memorandum - Federal Fleet Performance. The contract term is for as many as five years and has a potential value of $5 million.

The federal government operates the largest fleet in America, with more than 650,000 vehicles. Its fleet-related goals include reducing vehicle capital and operating costs, petroleum consumption, and greenhouse-gas emissions through the optimization of fleet size and composition and other fleet management process improvements.

As stipulated in the May Presidential Memorandum, GSA has provided guidance for agencies through Federal Management Regulation Bulletin B-30. The bulletin advises agencies on development of a Vehicle Allocation Methodology (VAM) to determine their optimum fleet inventory and eliminate non-essential vehicles. Each agency must submit a VAM report and fleet management plan to GSA by Feb. 17, 2012.

Mercury's contract (BPA # GS-00I-11-AA-C-0198) allows agencies to retain the firm to assist in completing specific projects and/or to provide ongoing, on-site staff support services, such as those it currently provides to the Department of Homeland Security under another federal supply schedulecontract. Federal agencies can award task orders for services related to VAM studies and right-sizing, as well as assistance in such areas as:

• Lease vs. own analysis

• Vehicle optimal replacement cycle determination

• Fleet replacement planning

• Fleet condition assessments

• Fleet operations best practices

• Fleet management information system studies and implementation support

• Policy and procedure development

"We realize that interest in improving fleet management practices and reducing fleet costs and carbon emissions is at an all-time high in the federal government, and we expect this interest to intensify as cost-cutting pressures mount," said Paul Lauria, Mercury Associates' president. "We are pleased that GSA has awarded us another contract that will enable federal fleet managers to easily secure our assistance in meeting these challenges."

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