Neckarsulm/Brussels, June, 4th, 2013 – Bechtle has won the largest tender ever issued by the European Commission for mobile devices. The contract includes not only notebooks, tablets and smartphones, but also services and consultation. The contract has a two-year duration with a renewal option for an additional two years maximum and is worth around 83 million euros. In addition to the European Commission, the contract encompasses 51 European institutions and agencies in the 27 member states, including the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and the European Council in Brussels.
Known as MEQ III, the tender was issued by the European Commission for the third of three contracts for mobility-related devices and services. This is the first contract to include tablets and a variety of mobile phones—including accessories—in addition to notebooks. The number of devices amounts to approximately 107,000, with Fujitsu as subcontractor.
“We are very pleased that the European Commission has seen fit to place its trust in Bechtle's capabilities. This is a fantastic achievement for our subsidiary in Brussels and it underlines, once more, our Europe-wide posi-tion in the IT sector. It also shines the spotlight on the know-how of our mo-bility specialists,” states Gerhard Marz, Division Manager of the Public Sec-tor Division for Bechtle AG. “We also benefit from excellent relationships with our partnered manufacturers whose reliability we value greatly. Our established and virtually seamless processes make even the most de-manding delivery agreements possible.”
Bechtle will take on full responsibility for managing the custom portfolio (available via an online platform), configuring and installing the requested software at the company headquarters in Neckarsulm, Germany, and providing on-site services throughout Europe for end devices. Furthermore, the contract also provides consultation services by Bechtle mobile device experts.
Bechtle has been doing business in Brussels since the beginning of 2012 through a local subsidiary as its main interface to the European Commis-sion. Aside from the Brussels office, Bechtle's Basic Installation centre at the Group's headquarters in Neckarsulm, the Bechtle Logistik & Service subsidiary and Bechtle's Field Services team will all play a major role in fulfilling the contract. In addition, the IT services and trading company has at its disposal considerable experience in the public sector, Europe-wide logistics and locations in 14 European countries.