Request for Information – 7.62x54R Armor Piercing Incendiary B32 Gen I Projectiles 

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS): 423990

Small Business Size Standard: 100 Employees

THE FOLLOWING IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP). This request is issued for market research purposes only.  Responses to this request are voluntary and will not affect any contractor's ability to submit a proposal if an RFP is released. The requested information is for planning purposes only and does NOT constitute a commitment, implied or otherwise, that a procurement action will be issued.

The U.S. Army Contracting Command – Aberdeen Proving Ground (ACC-APG) (on behalf of U.S. Army Product Manager for Soldier Protective Equipment (PdM SPE)), is conducting a Request for Information (RFI) to identify domestic products suppliers and resellers, of a 7.62x54R Armor Piercing Incendiary B32 Gen I projectile.

The B32 Gen I projectile is a 7.62 diameter armor-piercing incendiary round which is a non-standard type of ammunition used for testing hard body armor plates. These projectiles will be hand-loaded into a 7.62x54R cartridge casing at Aberdeen Test Center (ATC) to ensure a consistent velocity for each test shot.

The Government is conducting market research to acquire information on the types and sizes of businesses that have a commercially available product that meets the following technical requirements:

• In English, head stamp information, which indicates the factory of origin and year of manufacture for all projectiles.
• All projectiles shall be from the same factory.
• All projectiles shall be in a pulled state, separate from the cartridge case. The Government will not procure the cartridge case.
• All projectiles shall have a visible steel core at the base (rear) of the projectile, which ensures the projectile is the B32 Gen I.
• All projectiles will be as close as possible to original state with red and black paint visible on the tip of the projectile and that they are free from corrosion/rust, and outer jacketing is free of gouges, scratches, or dents.
• Outer packing will be marked in accordance with 49 CFR 173.62 (Packing Instruction 133) and 49 CFR 178.500 (UN Performance Oriented Packaging).

Schedule:

• The Government is conducting market research through this RFI to determine industry’s capability to support an annual procurement of up to 20,000 rounds over a five (5) year ordering period.

Responses to RFI shall include:

• A one-page cover sheet that identifies the title, organization(s) size (small or large business), respondent's technical and administrative points of contact - including names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of all authors - and clearly indicating its association with this RFI.
• An information paper, of no more than five pages, that includes: ability to meet above stated technical requirements and delivery capability / quantities per month.
• Estimated unit price per projectile.
• Pictures of the projectile that clearly shows head stamp traceability.

Additional Information:

• Responding vendors are not required to submit a product demonstration model of a projectile.
• All properly marked proprietary information will be appropriately handled.
• Any submitted material will not be returned.

Interested firms are requested to submit relevant information on their company within 30 days following the publication of this RFI. Any relevant company background/experience, business category, costs, and any other information that the company believes demonstrates their value/ability to meet the aforementioned requirements should be included.

Respondents must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM), https://www.sam.gov. All information and evaluation results will be controlled and used for Governmental purposes only.

Electronic responses to this notice are due no later than 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time on 22 March 2024 and shall be sent to the following individuals:

• PM SPE, Attn: Ms. Brenda Lay, at [email protected]; and
• ACC-APG, Attn: Kelsey Collins, at [email protected]. 

Hardcopy submissions may be sent to:

PdM SPE

ATTN: Brenda Lay

Acquisition Support Analyst

PdM Soldier Protective Equipment

10125 Kingman Road, Building 317

Fort Belvoir, VA 22060