Category: Industry News

I often watch the procurement history run as it’s loaded into BidLink just to make sure everything is working properly. There was a larger than usual number contracts over the first two weeks of February with 636,454 line items purchased. As the data was whizzing by I can see the usual companies repeating with food being dominant.

I thought it might be interesting to look at who the big players are this month. The data encompasses the first two weeks of Feburary 2026. What I found surprising was a large amount of footwear and body armor. National Industries of the Blind is a major supplier of batteries.

Total Sales	Company
$28,181,745	SUMMIT SHOJI INC.
$19,464,300	ORIGINAL FOOTWEAR COMPANY
$19,218,769	NORTHROP GRUMMAN SYSTEMS
$15,300,000	AMSTED GRAPHITE MATERIALS
$10,743,076	JAMAICA BEARINGS CO. INC.
$10,151,100	POINT BLANK PROTECTIVE APPAREL
$9,771,940	J&T RECYCLING CORPORATION
$9,600,000	INTREPID EAGLE LOGISTICS
$9,468,006	HWI GEAR
$9,065,827	ROCKY BRANDS
$9,041,466	NATIONAL INDUSTRIES FOR THE BLIND
$8,897,239	CAPPS SHOE COMPANY
$8,645,085	TETRA TECH
$8,348,346	SAN ANTONIO SHOE
$7,892,352	READYONE INDUSTRIES
$7,892,352	GOODWILL INDUSTRIES OF SOUTH
$7,376,021	AMERIQUAL GROUP
$6,821,716	KGL FOOD SERVICES WLL
$6,553,323	VALIANT INTEGRATED SERVICES
$6,463,848	BELLEVILLE SHOE MANUFACTURING
$5,620,439	COCA-COLA BOTTLERS JAPAN
$5,461,932	PROPPER INTERNATIONAL
$4,481,933	SAN ANTONIO LIGHTHOUSE FOR THE BLIND
$4,415,893	OKINAWA COCA-COLA BOTTLING CO
$4,372,826	NOBLE SUPPLY & LOGISTICS
$4,197,600	MCRAE INDUSTRIES
$4,086,257	SEASHORE FRUIT & PRODUCE
$3,967,764	OCEAN FAIR INTERNATIONAL SHIP
$3,834,089	FECHHEIMER BROTHERS
$3,688,648	COGGINS INTERNATIONAL
$3,637,583	VALLEY APPAREL
$3,160,800	D-J ENGINEERING
$2,940,586	EBREX FOOD SERVICES SARL
$2,852,432	D&G SUPPORT SERVICES
$2,772,347	ACCENTURE FEDERAL SERVICES
$2,754,877	GIL SEWING CORP.
$2,698,677	CREATION GARDENS
$2,681,087	US FOODS
$2,577,820	COASTAL PACIFIC FOOD
$2,539,143	PECKHAM VOCATIONAL INDUSTRIES
$2,487,639	VAL-PRO
$2,429,840	HYDRO-AIRE
$2,395,754	HAMILTON SUNDSTRAND
$2,239,466	BROTHERS PRODUCE OF DALLAS
$2,233,346	TRIPLE “B” CORPORATION
$2,224,790	ATLANTIC DIVING SUPPLY
$2,187,550	ECI DEFENSE GROUP, INC.
$2,135,187	FORESTWOOD FARM
$1,986,651	THEODOR WILLE INTERTRADE GMBH
$1,867,026	SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT CORPORATION

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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Part of an ongoing series of articles discussing techniques defense contractors can use to grow their business. While looking at a solicitation for navigational lights on the UH-60 helicopter we found a significant increase in pricing over a short period. The price increase was after the BLS inflation rate was decreasing. Many times when you find price hikes such as this, more opportunities can be found by researching a specific company or part.

GMS International is a broker, the OEM is Luminescent Systems Incorporated; a subsidiary of Astronics Corporation (NASDAQ: ATRO). This NSN references that Sikorsky drawings are available from DLA. Grimes CAGE 72914, now Honeywell Aerospace was a previous manufacturer of this item.

When a company is selling an item for what is likely a large profit margin it makes us wonder what other items they are selling. This Navigation light (AKA Position Light) is used on a number of Sikorsky Helicopter variants. Searching the part number and refining by the OEM CAGE we get a list of similar items.

We can see four different items, all used on the Sikorsky helicopter. Here we notice two items appear to be competitively priced, while two have significant price increases. So in addition to the top one which has a current solicitation, the second item is also regularly purchased and has seen a rapid rise in price.

6220-01-253-0380	Part: 7847-4	GMS international
Price	Quantity	Award Date
$990	70	7/2017
$1,131	80	5/2020
$2,049	67	6/2024

6220-01-190-3149	Part: 7847-3	GMS international
Price	Quantity	Award Date
$727	10	1/2018
$1,475	10	10/2023
$3,165	7	1/2026

6220-01-096-1049	Part: 7847-1	Aeropanel Corp
Price	Quantity	Award Date
$617	122	5/2015
$417	248	10/2020
$389	211	8/2024

6220-01-123-0209	Part: 7847-5	GMS international
Price	Quantity	Award Date
$652	45	3/2017
$720	20	4/2020
$792	26	3/2025

Using the tactic of stripping off the end of the part number is an easy way to investigate similar items to look for opportunities you might be missing.

If you are a company that manufactures navigational lighting you might be interested in bidding the current solicitation for 6220-01-253-0380. The total quantity is 120 units. Based on recent pricing the contract is worth $245,880.

To learn more, log into BidLink and put SPE8E7-26-T-1249 into Search for Anything at the top.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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The Defense Logistics Agency has issued a solicitation for long-term supply of relief valves. These valves are used on the F-16 and F/A-18 aircraft. The resulting contract will have one base year and four option years for a total of five. Each contract line item (CLIN) will be evaluated on an “All or None” basis per NSN, with each line being awarded to the best value offeror for that NSN.

NSN	Recent price @ qty (inflation)	Total value
4820-00-494-0755	$434.74 @ 33 ($449 adj)	$114,495
4820-00-868-6584	$720.94 @ 29 ($746 adj)	$48,490
4820-00-980-7721	$366.99 @ 133	$1,570,760

Total contract Value $1,733,745

The most recent awardee for these is Essex Industries. Other suppliers included Lee Air and Delta Technologies. These are critical safety items which require government approval of the supplier. As a result, a long time frame has been added to this contract giving new suppliers an opportunity to obtain approval.

All offers due by February 27, 2026.

To learn more, log into BidLink and put SPE7MX-26-R-X004 into Search for Anything at the top.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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DLA Troop Support has issued a solicitation which will result in a five year contract for supply of Crew Restraint Tether Assembies.

NSN	Name	Price	Quantity	Total
8465-01-674-8474	Webbing	$789.00	12500	$9,862,500
8465-01-674-8481	Webbing	$600.00	5000	$3,000,000
8465-01-675-2517	Webbing	$789.00	625	$493,125
8465-01-675-2523	Webbing	$600.00	250	$150,000
8465-01-674-8485	Loop cover	$23.00	250	$5,750
8465-01-674-8487	Snap link	$23.00	1250	$28,750
8465-01-674-8561	Handle cover	$23.00	4500	$103,500
Total				$13,643,625

Even though these NSNs were assigned in 2018 there is no procurement history for any of them.  The prices above are based on the DOD mlc price.  The one company listed in the MCRD is Survival Innovations.

Technical data is available on these items and a long lead time of 260 days to deliver from date of order.  There is also over a month to respond to the RFP.

All offers due by January 19, 2026.

To learn more, log into BidLink and put SPE1C1-26-R-0006 into Search for Anything at the top.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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For 2026 the micro-purchase threshold was raised from $10,000 to $15,000 to keep up with inflation. For people new to defense contracting micro-purchases side-step many of the FAR regulations.

– The Government-wide commercial purchase card shall be the preferred method to purchase and to pay for micro-purchases

– Micro-purchases may be awarded without soliciting competitive quotations if the contracting officer or individual considers the price to be reasonable.

– The administrative cost of verifying the reasonableness of the price for purchases may more than offset potential savings from detecting instances of overpricing.

– Micro-purchases do not require provisions or clauses, except as provided at 13.202 and 32.1110.

– End user agreements for licenses, software, and subscription services might not be enforceable.

With an increased focus on Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) items at DOD, it is likely we will see more transactions that are below the micro-purchase threshold.  If your products can be purchased via credit card this is where building relationships with potential end users will bear more fruit than scraping through DIBBS.

Another threshold that is worth mentioning is justifications for other than full and open competition (FAR 6.304).  Now any transaction under $900,000 can be certified sole-source by the contracting officer without requiring higher approval or a formal J&A.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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DLA Aviation has issued a solicitation which will result in a five year contract for supply of oil sorbent.  These sorbent sheets (NSN 4235-01-219-7414) are 16″ wide x 18″ long x 0.375″ thick, 100 sheets per bale.

They were last sold to the military by Complete Environmental Products (CAGE 1F5T7) for $20.19 per bale in quantity of 4,088 bales. They were also for $19.35 @ 10,682 bales by Downeast Logistics.  DLA estimates annual quantity at 23,418 bales x 5 years = 117,090 bails.  Guaranteed minimum quantity is 5,457.

Based on past procurement history pricing we estimate the value of this contract at $2.3 Million.  This solicitation is set-aside for small business.  All offers due by Dec 18, 2025.

To learn more, log into BidLink and put SPE4A7-26-R-0127 into Search for Anything at the top.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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An area often overlooked by defense contractors who are searching DLA and SAM is the General Services Administration (GSA).  DOD is required to check GSA’s Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) before issuing a solicitation through DIBBS as per FAR 8.002.  If you are supplying items that are on GSA and cannot seem to find bids on DIBBS, you might be pursuing the wrong channels to sell goods.

Certain items are predominantly sold through GSA which is why they might not appear in your regular bid feed.

Getting on a GSA schedule takes time and research but can provide consistent income.  After receiving a GSA contract companies can sell their products through GSA advantage and respond to RFQs through GSA.  This doesn’t mean that companies will automatically see new business as they will still need to promote their products to customers who can use the GSA system to buy.  The same relationship building that goes into DOD contracting applies to GSA.

Below is a list of the top GSA contractors for the first half of the year:

You will notice that Industries for the Blind is atop this list.  This is an Ability One company as per FAR 8.7, which hires people who are blind or severely disabled.  This organization provides a lot of commercial items including batteries to the military.

Below is a list of the top selling items at GSA:

NSN	description	total dollars
5180015848643	FRS P/N FRS Tool Load	6,725,200
7530015399831	PAPER, COPYING, XEROGRAPH	5,881,933
7530013352623	PAPER, COPYING, XEROGRAPH	5,325,988
8105012842924	BAG, WASTE RECEPTACLE: –	3,178,414
5120014767556	INTRENCHING TOOL, HAND:EN	2,793,960
7920011800557	CLOTH, CLEANING: IAW FEDE	2,669,628
8115014440206	PALLET BASE, SHIPPING BOX	2,662,909
5180015163219	TOOL KIT, WEAPONS CLEANIN	2,562,061
5180016490856	SATS APPROVED P/N:TOOL LO	2,374,613
8415014920178	GLOVES,DISPOSABLE,NITRILE	2,290,735
7920008239773	TOWEL,PAPERL CLEANING AND	2,191,763
8115007746562	BOX, SHIPPING: – SEE ATTA	2,095,748
7920014541150	TOWEL,MACHINERY WIP	2,077,165
7110010290389	Filing Cabinet, Gray, Cla	2,012,500
7530012002207	XEROGRAPHIC PAPER FOR SAV	2,003,315
8115014440211	TOP, NESTING, SHIPPING BO	1,744,748
7110015631697	Filing Cabinet, Gray, Cla	1,734,020
5340014635841	PADLOCK SET SHAPE, SOLID	1,685,072
7110016535900	WORK SURFACE,ADJUSTUSTABL	1,633,956
7110015736559	MID BACK TASK CHAIR,FABRI	1,605,464
8115015624555	BOX, PLASTIC: – SEE ATTAC	1,571,154
8415014920179	GLOVES,DISPOSABLE,NITRILE	1,514,130
8540002627178	TOWEL,PAPERCHED DOCUMENT	1,492,838
8540013800690	PAPER, TOILET: – SEE ATTA	1,477,447
7110009199193	Filing Cabinet, Gray, Cla	1,387,508
7110010298059	Filing Cabinet, Black, Cl	1,346,879
8115015562581	SHIPPING AND STORAGTEM:-	1,330,275
7110015736539	HIGH BACK TASK CHAIR W/AD	1,169,794
8115015829710	SHIPPING AND STORAGE SYST	1,165,028
7350012636701	PLATE, PAPER (ROUND, 3-CO	1,158,502
7530015038441	PAPER, XEROGRAPHIC: – SEE	1,152,370
5340002856523	PADLOCK	1,102,644
7510016525433	TAPE,PRESSURE SENSI ADHES	1,088,073
8415014920180	GLOVES,DISPOSABLE,NITRILE	1,076,537

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

 

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Batteries are good business for U.S. Defense contractors.  From vehicles and drones to lights and communication equipment, batteries power the military.  These items have a shelf life that requires regular replacement, guaranteeing ongoing business for companies in this sector.

As with many industries a handful of suppliers are winning a large amount of this business.  Enersys Energy is clearly the top supplier and this is not including their recent acquisition of Bren-Tronics.  Enersys brought in $44 Million with Eastern Carolina in second place at $20 Million.

Below are the top selling batteries.  Many of these have only one competitor.  Items with AMC 3Z are Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) items. Some of these companies like Eastern Carolina re-package bulk batteries like 9 volts into smaller packages for distribution.

NSN	qty	sales	Offers	AMC
6140-01-485-1472	154530	54,215,707	2	1C
6140-01-446-9498	85447	20,502,228	3	1G
6135-01-481-7127	6095	11,600,065	1	3C
6140-01-633-9444	37063	9,258,273	4	1G
6140-00-168-3803	38000	6,089,440	1	3R
6135-01-333-6101	191256	5,735,767	1	1Z
6135-01-517-6060	7110	5,537,268	1	1G
6135-01-438-9450	20101	4,227,004	2	1G
6135-00-985-7845	580052	4,135,088	1	1Z
6140-01-374-2243	24837	4,018,476	1	1B
6140-01-446-9506	20525	3,409,318	1	1G
6140-01-662-7350	11407	3,243,638	1	3D
6140-01-678-7176	5112	3,062,028	1	3D
6140-01-507-3448	119	2,914,598	1	3C
6140-01-441-4272	14483	2,787,274	1	3Z
6140-01-378-8232	18617	2,744,246	1	3Z
6140-01-400-2901	1537	2,690,572	1	3D
6140-01-521-8584	3080	2,517,072	1	3D
6140-01-665-0882	5310	2,472,621	1	3Z

 

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

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DLA Troop Support has issued a solicitation for 900 cargo nets.  These nets (NSN 1670-01-029-8556) are used to transport freight suspended beneath helicopters, permitting a delivery without landing.  They are 12 feet in diameter with a working load of 3,000 lbs, for use in light and medium class helicopters.

The last company that sold these to the military was Barry USA which sold 900  units for $1,185 each. The price has increased dramatically from $444 in 2018. Based on past procurement history pricing the estimated value of this contract $1 Million.  Unlike other RFPs from DLA this is a single order for 900 units as opposed to an IDIQ where delivery orders are submitted over years.

Technical data is available on this item in the form of public specification so new companies can compete: https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/programs/fire/documents/5100_502f.pdf

All offers due by October 3, 2025.   Vendors have 240 days from award to deliver the material.

To learn more, log into BidLink and put SPE8E6-25-R-0004 into Search for Anything at the top.

Tired of DIBBS / SAM and bid services that don’t understand defense contracting?  Try BidLink for free at www.bidlink.net.

 

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