The Air Force plans to bundle most information technology purchases, buying hardware and software through a newly created IT Commodity Council.

The council negotiated its first purchase last month, acquiring 12,500 personal computers for the Air Force Materiel Command from Dell Corp. for about $7.5 million.

Air Force chief information officer John Gilligan said other major commands’ PC and notebook needs will also be bundled, Government Computer News reported. Speaking at a conference in Montgomery, AL, Aug. 28, he said the Dell PCs were bought at a 30% discount based on the large volume.

The director of the IT Commodity Council, Kenneth Heitkamp, said the same strategy will be used to buy printers, software and services. Commodity councils will be created to buy other products ranging from uniforms to medical supplies.

“Manufacturing has lost more than 2.7 million jobs over the past 36 months, and no more than half of those jobs will return without urgently-needed policy changes,” said Jerry Jasinowski, president of the National Association of Manufacturers.

In releasing the association’s annual Labor Day report on the manufacturing economy, Jasinowski said, “Unfair international trade practices, particularly by China, plus an overvalued dollar, make it impossible for manufacturers to raise prices to meet escalating domestic costs associated with health care, pensions, regulations, asbestos litigation and rising energy costs, especially for natural gas.

“Over the last decade, the prices of manufactured products declined by 4 percent while other business prices rose 18 percent. This toxic brew is lowering profit margins and reducing cash flow, reducing the funds available for capital investment and jobs. What is needed now is a new strategy to strengthen manufacturing’s competitive position.

“A successful World Trade Organization Doha Round, as well as regional and bilateral trade agreements, must include a sharp and rapid phase-in of reductions in applied tariffs on manufactured products by our trading partners,” Jasinowski said. “China’s commitments to open its internal market and abide by international trade rules must be enforced. China must also allow its currency to be set by the marketplace and end its practice of keeping its exchange rate hugely undervalued. It is time for the Administration to get tough with the Chinese.

“We also have to reduce the costs of production in the U.S.,” Jasinowski said “Policy makers need to address the significant cost increases in the areas of healthcare, litigation, regulation, and energy that are undermining the ability of manufacturing to compete and prosper.

President Bush announced on Labor Day that the Commerce Department will create an assistant secretary position to focus on the needs of manufacturers.

Eighty-four percent of federal contract dollars awarded to women-owned small businesses in fiscal 2002 came from seven agencies: Defense, GSA, NASA, Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs, HUD and Treasury.

Ninety-one percent of all federal contract actions to women-owned small businesses that year came from six agencies: Defense, Veterans Affairs, GSA, Justice, Agriculture and HHS.

According to the National Women’s Business Council, the average value of federal contracts awarded to women-owned small businesses was $25,069, compared to an average value of $29,222 for all awards.

The Navy canceled all 23,000 of its purchase cards after a hacker attack The Defense Department provided no details about the attack. The Navy was working with CitiBank to issue new ones.

SBA will hand out its annual awards at the Small Business Conference and Expo in Washington Sept. 17-19.

The conference features most of the events usually held during Small Business Week in May, including naming the Small Business Person of the Year. The events were re-scheduled for September to coincide with SBA’s 50th anniversary celebration.

The conference will include a trade show, procurement matchmaking, business sessions and a town hall meeting as well as the award ceremonies.

For information, go to www.sba.gov/50.