TECHNOLOGY - Jan. 2, 1993

GSA Tells Why It Killed AF Contract: The General Services Administration said it rejected a $740-million contract awarded by the Air Force to computer maker Zenith Data Systems in part because the Air Force failed to consider a joint award properly. The agency also said ZDS failed to meet requirements that an adequate portion of the computers be U.S.-built. The Air Force’s awarding of the contract has been overturned twice in the last year by the GSA. ZDS, owned by the French company Machines Bull, got the contract after it appealed the first award. Last week, the GSA’s contract board scrapped the ZDS award for 300,000 Air Force desktop computers. It did not cite its reasons until confidential data was deleted from the ruling. The latest award was challenged by several U.S. firms.