The Government Accountability Office has recommended that the Defense Department adopt a strategy to help defense agencies share information regarding the quality and price reasonableness of commercial off-the-shelf products.
GAO said Tuesday DoD should also develop a plan to fill the Commercial Item Group database with more data and appoint an entity to oversee the exchange of information regarding commercial items.
The government audit agency urged the department to determine how the database should be sustained and financially supported.
GAO found during a study that defense agencies face challenges in collecting market data on COTS products and that contractors occasionally take longer to submit information about their offerings.
The watchdog noted that implementing an information sharing strategy will help DoD determine if a specialized product needs to be modified prior to delivery.