CSC in Talks on Pratt & Whitney Contract

Computer Sciences Corp. is negotiating a contract to take over Pratt & Whitney’s information technology functions in a deal that could be worth as much as $1 billion over several years, the companies said. The aircraft engine maker expects to work out a deal with El Segundo-based Computer Sciences in the next couple of months, said Pratt & Whitney spokesman Mark Sullivan. The East Hartford, Conn.-based unit of United Technologies has 700 information technology employees--most are in Connecticut and Florida--who will be reassigned after the IT functions are outsourced, Sullivan said. The negotiations were first reported by PC Week Online. Computer Sciences has signed several long-term contracts recently--among them deals with AT&T;, the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Postal Service--beating out rivals such as Electronic Data Systems, IBM Global Services and Lockheed Martin. In NYSE trading, Computer Sciences shares jumped $4.69 to close at $72.25, and United Technologies shares gained $1.25 to close at $122.50.