In 2002, the Chief of Naval Operations put into effect Seapower 21 which, in effect, called upon the entire Navy to find ways to become more efficient and effective. As a result, the NAVSEA Warfare Centers established the Seaport Enhanced (SeaPort-e) Multiple Award Contract mechanism which uses a web-based, e-business procurement portal, to facilitate performance-based service acquisition, leverage buying power, improve business intelligence and reduce cycle time.

The Navy Systems Commands (NAVSEA, NAVAIR, SPAWAR, NAVFAC, and NAVSUP), the Office of Naval Research, the United States Marine Corp, and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) can compete their service requirements amongst SeaPort-e IDIQ multiple award contract holders. The SeaPort-e portal provides a standardized, efficient means of soliciting offers from the diverse population of large and small businesses and their approved team members. All task orders are competitively solicited, awarded and managed using the   SeaPort-e platform.