Software Is the Contract

How OAS Redefines Federal Acquisition

In the complex world of federal procurement, contracts have traditionally been static documents — thick with legal clauses, locked in PDFs, and managed through a maze of offices and legacy systems. But nGAP Inc’s Open Acquisition System (OAS) offers a bold new vision: what if the software is the contract?

This paradigm shift is not just a change in tools — it’s a transformation of how the government does business.

From Paper to Platform

As shown in the image, OAS seamlessly integrates the core entities in federal acquisition: the Program Office, Contracting Office, Vendors, and Payment Office. Each plays a role in the lifecycle of a government purchase — from placing orders and managing funds to conducting procurement, delivering goods, and processing payments. Traditionally, this process generates a separate paper-based or PDF contract file — an output that trails behind the activity.

With OAS, the contract is embedded directly in the system itself.

Each transaction, authorization, modification, and payment is digitally captured in real-

time — making the contract a living, evolving record that is always up to date, always

audit-ready, and fully transparent.

Encapsulation: One Source of Truth

OAS doesn't just document the contract — it encapsulates it. Every interaction between agencies and vendors, every fund movement, and every compliance check is digitized and codified within the system. The result is a single source of truth — not a static PDF, but a dynamic, actionable data object that can be queried, monitored, and reported on at any moment.

This makes OAS not just a tool for procurement teams, but a contract authority in

itself.

Real-Time Compliance and Execution

Unlike traditional systems that require retroactive reviews, OAS enables real-time

compliance enforcement, alerting users instantly to any deviations from FAR/DFARS

regulations or agency-specific protocols. Since the contract lives inside the software, every rule, clause, and deliverable is enforced through the system’s logic. This reduces the need for separate oversight layers and makes post-award contract management far more efficient and accurate.

Digital Transformation in Practice

By digitizing and encapsulating the contract instrument itself, OAS streamlines the entire acquisition workflow:

Program Offices can place orders and manage funds with built-in controls.

Contracting Officers operate within a compliant digital environment, removing

redundant approvals.

Vendors engage in transparent delivery and invoicing processes.

Payment Offices track and confirm fulfillment with embedded documentation.

This full-loop integration allows OAS to generate the official contract file automatically,

with zero manual reconciliation.

The Future of Procurement is Software-Defined

With OAS, nGAP Inc. isn’t just offering another acquisition platform — it's leading a shift to software-defined contracting. When the software is the contract, agencies gain unmatched speed, accuracy, accountability, and insight. As federal agencies and defense departments face increasing scrutiny and budget pressures, tools like OAS offer a future where compliance, efficiency, and fiscal responsibility are built directly into the systems they use — not just the paperwork they file.