Many agencies are not using standard cost model to improve the inventory and consolidation of data centers, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report.In its July 19 report, GAO said only three of the 24 agencies have responded to the Office of Management and Budget‘s request to create an inventory of data centers.
Only one agency has submitted a complete cost-benefit analysis of the consolidation, according to the report.
Under OMB’s Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative, only 1,186 data centers should remain by 2015 out of the 2,900 current centers.
As part of its report, GAO studied master program schedules and cost-benefit analyses at the departments of Agriculture, Homeland Security, Interior, Transportation and Veterans Affairs.
None of those five agencies followed a properly sequenced schedule or a sound cost estimate, the report says.
GAO recommends the federal chief information officer issue a standardized cost model to improve the data center consolidation plans.
Federal CIO Steven VanRoekel reported in December 2011 that the government was ahead of schedule in closing data centers.
VanRoekel said at the time the White House has set a goal of shutting 800 centers by 2015.
