Military subcontractor
adds to technical staffA government subcontractor working on a $6.9 billion Navy computer information system project plans to hire 16 employees in Hawaii this year, in addition to 31 people hired in recent months.
WamNet Government Services Inc., a subsidiary of Eagan, Minn.-based WamNet Inc., is a subcontractor to Electronic Data Systems Corp., which won the Navy contract in 2000. WamNet's government services unit designs, builds and manages computer networks.
WamNet is seeking Cisco-certified engineers and network technicians to work in Hawaii, with annual salaries ranging from $40,000 to $100,000, said Michael Barbee, president and general manager of the WamNet unit. Of the 31 people already hired here by WamNet, 25 were local residents. All personnel must receive government security clearance.
"We try to hire locally to the extent that we can," Barbee said. "Sometimes you can't find those people locally, but we've been pretty pleased."
People are encouraged to apply online, Barbee said. The company's jobs are posted at hotjobs.com and monster.com. WamNet's Web site is wamnet.com.
The project, known as the Navy-Marine Corps Intranet, is setting up a system to consolidate about 300 Navy and Marine bases into a single network that links personnel. It is the Navy's biggest information-technology program, and could connect as many as 410,000 individual computer desktops.
Electronic Data Systems, based in Plano, Texas, is the nation's second-largest seller of computer services, and receives about 20 percent of its revenue from contracts with governments worldwide. In December, EDS was given permission to proceed with the Navy project after two years of testing delays, according to Bloomberg News. Other subcontractors on the project are Cisco Systems Inc., Dell Computer Corp., Microsoft Corp, Raytheon Co. and General Dynamics Corp.
WamNet is also looking to hire subcontractors, Barbee said.
WamNet Inc.