CGI Obtains an Important $4.7 Million Contract for the Year 2000 Conversion of the SAAQ'S Computer Systems.QUEBEC--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 21, 1997-- CGI GROUP CGI Group Inc. (TSX: GIB.A, NYSE: GIB) is a Canadian-based information technology (IT) management and business process services (BPS) company. Founded in 1976 as Conseillers en Gestion et Informatique (TSE See Tokyo Stock Exchange. TSE 1. See Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). 2. See Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE). ;ME GIB See NIST binary. .A) - First major Quebec Government Year 2000 conversion contract - CGI CGI in full Common Gateway Interface. Specification by which a Web server passes data between itself and an application program. Typically, a Web user will make a request of the Web server, which in turn passes the request to a CGI application program. partners with IBM (International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, www.ibm.com) The world's largest computer company. IBM's product lines include the S/390 mainframes (zSeries), AS/400 midrange business systems (iSeries), RS/6000 workstations and servers (pSeries), Intel-based servers (xSeries) and Informission - 50 new high-tech jobs for Quebec City The CGI Group Inc. today announced that it has been awarded, following a public invitation to tender, a major contract of over $4.7 million for the Year 2000 conversion of the Quebec Automobile Insurance Comission (SAAQ SAAQ Societe de l'Assurance Automobile du Québec (Canada) SAAQ State Aviation Activities Questionnaire SAAQ Security Audit And Questionnaire (Security Pros) ) computer systems. This contract, which will contribute to the creation of close to 50 new jobs in Quebec City is the first major Year 2000 contract awarded by a Quebec Government organization. CGI and its two specialized Year 2000 partners IBM and Informisssion will immediately start the conversion work which will continue for almost three years. "This contract is excellent news for CGI and its partners as well as for employment in the Quebec City area," said Guy Laberge, Senior Vice-President of CGI in Quebec City. "It confirms that our expertise and the exclusive tools we have at our disposal give us a solid lead over the competition. We must also acknowledge the Quebec Government's rigorous management approach which places it among the first public administrations in Canada to develop a global and structured approach to the critical Year 2000 problem Year 2000 problem, Y2K problem, or millennium bug, in computer science, a design flaw in the hardware or software of a computer that caused erroneous results when working with dates beyond Dec. 31, 1999. ." CGI's contract includes the Year 2000 conversion of most of the SAAQ's information systems, including those which manage vehicle registration, drivers' licenses and compensation. It is common knowledge that most large computer systems on a worldwide basis cannot recognize dates beyond 1999, a glitch A temporary or random hardware malfunction. It is possible that a bug in a program may cause the hardware to appear as if it had a glitch in it and vice versa. At times it can be extremely difficult to determine whether a problem lies within the hardware or the software. See glitch attack. which, if it is not corrected on time, could cause very serious dysfunctions. This problem is more complex than it first appears and specialists evaluate the global cost of correcting it at approximetaly US$600 billion. The Quebec government says it will spend approximately $50 million to update its systems for the millennium. "This contract complements an impressive series of Year 2000 related mandates which have been entrusted to us by numerous pivate and public organizations from all over Canada," added Laberge; "this provides us with a unique conversion expertise. Our partner, Quebec City-based Informission, offers a Year 2000 conversion software solution which is recognized as one of the best in the world and no one will challenge IBM's unmatched mastery of large, centralized system environments. The specialists we train in Quebec City will eventually handle work for information systems located elsewhere in Canada or in other countries." With its 2,500 specialists, CGI is the largest Canadian-owned independent information technlogy consulting firm. It provides end- to-end services and business solutions to more than 1,800 clients throughout Canada and elsewhere in the world. CONTACT: The CGI Group Inc. Yves Roberge, 514/841-3230 http://www.cgi.ca |
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