{"id":2287,"date":"2019-08-15T19:02:49","date_gmt":"2019-08-15T19:02:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/?p=2287"},"modified":"2019-09-19T17:19:34","modified_gmt":"2019-09-19T17:19:34","slug":"dla-land-maritime-1-5-million-dollar-rfq-for-foam-products-earbud-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/2019\/08\/dla-land-maritime-1-5-million-dollar-rfq-for-foam-products-earbud-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"DLA Land &#038; Maritime $1.5 Million RFQ for Earbud Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_2290\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2290\" style=\"width: 627px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/communication_ear_plugs_CEP_HGU-56P_Helmet.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2290\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/communication_ear_plugs_CEP_HGU-56P_Helmet.jpg\" alt=\"Communication Ear Plugs,CEP,HGU-56\/P Helmet\" width=\"627\" height=\"575\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/communication_ear_plugs_CEP_HGU-56P_Helmet.jpg 627w, https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/communication_ear_plugs_CEP_HGU-56P_Helmet-300x275.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 627px) 100vw, 627px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2290\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Communication Ear Plugs (CEP) and HGU-56\/P Helmet<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The U.S. Defense Department (DoD) buys more than almost anyone else.\u00a0 In this post, we review a current example of DoD procurement for a common item and how to use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/home.php?o=1\">BidLink.net<\/a> to find and develop new commercial opportunities for selling to the DoD.<\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s take a look at a seemingly mundane item like earbuds.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this week we noticed in BidLlink.net that Defense Logistics Agency Land &amp; Maritime posted a solicitation for &#8220;Cushion, Ear&#8221; (ie, foam earbuds) under an\u00a0 Indefinite Delivery Purchase Order (IDPO) worth potentially $1.5 million.\u00a0 The four (4) NSNs in the requirement and their Annual Demand Quantity (ADQ) are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>5965-01-504-0073; ADQ 2,630<\/li>\n<li>5965-01-504-1051; ADQ 1,056<\/li>\n<li>5965-01-588-6710; ADQ 390<\/li>\n<li>5965-01-623-2248; ADQ 609<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2293\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2293\" style=\"width: 497px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/cep_in_ear.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2293\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/cep_in_ear.jpg\" alt=\"Communication Ear Plug,CEP\" width=\"497\" height=\"835\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/cep_in_ear.jpg 497w, https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/cep_in_ear-179x300.jpg 179w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 497px) 100vw, 497px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2293\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Communication Ear Plugs (CEP) in Ear<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>A brief description of the earbud tips<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Thousands of earbud tips are used by DOD every month.\u00a0 Many are used with headsets and in Communications Earplug (CEP) kits. These Communications Earplug kits adds wired earbuds or, in-ear headphones, to the various helmets used by the military. One helmet in which these earbud headphones and earbud tips are used is the Head Gear Unit 56\/P (HGU-56\/P), first pictured above.\u00a0Aviation Life Support Systems (ALSS) and communication radio systems such as the Combat Survivor Evader Locator (CSEL) communication system with AN\/PRQ-7 radio sets also use these earbud tips. \u00a0They are also used with the Flight Deck Helmet with Argonaut Headset.<\/p>\n<p>US Manufacturers of memory foam, Viscoelastic Polyurethane or PU Foam manufacturers might be interested in reviewing this RFQ for earbud tips; or in searching <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/register.php\">BidLink.net<\/a>\u00a0for many other RFQs for plastic or rubber items that DoD purchases.<\/p>\n<p>The solicitation number for this government contracting opportunity is SPE7MX19RX048. You can see all the details including NSN past procurement, supplier history, technical descriptions, etc., by searching on the the solicitation number in a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/register.php\">free BidLink.net bid search<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Finding government contracting opportunities<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>DoD posts solicitations under specific Product Categories and Classifications. Using and understanding these categories will greatly improve your success in finding items you can sell to DOD.\u00a0 The above 4 NSNs were listed under the product classification \u201cHeadsets, Handsets, Microphones and Speakers,\u201d or Federal Supply Class (FSC) 5965.\u00a0 Finding and understanding which categories to search under is essential, no matter what you sell.<\/p>\n<p>Knowledge about where and how an item is used by DOD as well current manufacturers and suppliers is extremely valuable &#8211; it can lead you to other opportunities.\u00a0 Time spent researching NSN data and procurement history helps you refine and create better bid searches.\u00a0 Many of the items DoD purchases on a regular basis have only one manufacturer; but DoD is always looking for new manufacturers and this can be excellent way to develop new business for your company.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">When searching for DoD contracting opportunities it is essential that you think like DoD.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Search for bids using the official item names and FSCs of the products.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\u00a0 In most cases you will never see statements like \u201cUS Army seeking companies to supply Foam Parts;&#8221; rather, DoD seeks: \u201cNSN 5965-01-504-0073 Cushion, Ear.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>DoD item naming can be cryptic.\u00a0 In the above example the\u00a0 DoD item name is \u201cCushion, Ear\u201d.\u00a0 Knowing the correct item name(s) used by DoD is essential in finding requirements for just the products that you can supply.\u00a0 One way to do this is to look at your competitors&#8217; past contract awards and review the items they sell or, have sold, to DoD. Or, you can talk to one of our experts who can show you how find DoD requirements that are of interest to you &gt;&gt; <a href=\"mailto:support@bidlink.net\">support@bidlink.net<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>(For more detail on how to identify item names see our previous post\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/2018\/08\/improve-your-contract-win-ratio-item-search-technique-part-2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IMPROVE YOUR CONTRACT WIN RATIO; ITEM SEARCH TECHNIQUE (Part 2)<\/a>\u00a0)<\/p>\n<p>If your company is interested in increasing your sales then selling to the Department of Defense is one\u00a0customer you should take a serious look at.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/register.php\">Sign up for a free trial at BidLink<\/a> to see what you have been missing, and speak to one of our experts to help you succeed when selling to the DOD.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share\" class=\"twitter-share-button\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-size=\"small\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-text=\"DLA Land &#038; Maritime $1.5 Million RFQ for Earbud Tips\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-via=\"\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-url=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/2019\/08\/dla-land-maritime-1-5-million-dollar-rfq-for-foam-products-earbud-tips\/\"\n\t\t\t\t>Tweet<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The U.S. Defense Department (DoD) buys more than almost anyone else.\u00a0 In this post, we review a current example of DoD procurement for a common item and how to use BidLink.net to find and develop new commercial opportunities for selling to the DoD. Let&#8217;s take a look at a seemingly mundane item like earbuds. Earlier &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/2019\/08\/dla-land-maritime-1-5-million-dollar-rfq-for-foam-products-earbud-tips\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;DLA Land &#038; Maritime $1.5 Million RFQ for Earbud Tips&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1],"tags":[154,155,156],"class_list":["post-2287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-government_contracts_bootcamp","category-industry_news","tag-earbud-tips","tag-earbuds","tag-hgu-56"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2287"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2362,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287\/revisions\/2362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bidlink.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}