FY2017 PROPOSED BUDGET

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Proposed FY2017 Budget
Chapter 3
from planning through contract close out. The automated system will provide visibility into
procurement requests, solicitations, and contracts, and will have self-service features for internal
and external transactions with bidders and vendors. The system will be the single, centralized
repository for managing all procurement related activities. The purpose is to modernize and
automate the lifecycle of a contract, reduce manual efforts, streamline processes and leverage the
existing PeopleSoft Financials and supply Chain (FSCM) system to support end to end
procurement activities with audit trail of all actions, events, and modifications within one system.
To achieve this objective, in FY2016, the PeopleSoft system is expanded to include a new module
called Supplier Contract Management and new custom built features to accommodate activities
related to initiating procurement requests, generating procurement-ready packages, collaboration,
and securing approvals with automated workflow and routing. The remaining system functionality
for solicitation and contract management will be delivered through a combination of reconfiguring
and customizing existing PeopleSoft modules called Strategic Sourcing, Supplier
Portal and eProcurement. Its notification process will remind each team what has to be done and
when, so that procurement related documentation and approvals remain on track.
CLM has a dedicated training team focused on delivering training to all users starting in February
2016. The system is planned to go live in March 2016.
Network and Communications
In preparation for the Rail Station Router Upgrade program, a comprehensive technical and
financial benchmark study of the dominate manufacturers’ of network routers and services was
conducted. The results of the benchmark was the selection of a manufacturer whose products were
determined to yield the best value to Metro measured in both cost and performance over the
expected life of the network router.
• Completed the deployment of wireless networking capabilities in 32 of 95 Rail Stations for
Metro’s operational use.
• Completed a benchmark study of the leading emergency telephone manufacturers. The
results of the benchmark was the selection of a manufacturer whose product was
determined to yield the best value to Metro measured in both cost and performance. Began
the procurement activities for the selected manufacturer. Project targeted to be completed
third quarter FY2016.
• Completed an analysis of Metro’s communication systems’ backup battery power system
to determine if the power architecture was sufficient to maintain the communication system
during a major power outage. As a result of this analysis, procurement activities are
underway to increase the capacity of the backup battery system by 50.0 percent. The power
system upgrade is scheduled to be completed by third quarter FY2016.
• Replaced the Rail Yard Tower and Block houses analog recording system with a new IP
recording system that provides the ability to remotely monitor the availability and
performance of the recording system. This enhancement enabled Metro to decommission
the analog recording network.
• Completed the upgrade of eight Network core routers to next generation routers that
provide enhanced security features.
• Deployed a new network timing architecture that will provide consistent time for all Metro
operational systems.
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