REQUEST FOR INFORMATION U.S. Army RDECOM Acquisition Center, Natick, MA on behalf of the United States Marine Corps (U.S.M.C.) is seeking information regarding the availability of fabric that satisfies the Government's requirements as described below and in the attached documents . This notice is constitutes a Request for Information only, THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION, no award will be made for this effort at this time. BACKGROUND: USMC is conducting a market survey to determine the availability of commercial or modified commercial products with flame resistance/non melt/non drip, improved wet weather protection, improved manual dexterity/tactility, and grip, and improved durability compared to the USMC's current glove systems for ground combat use in temperate and cold conditions. One system, the Combat Utility Glove (CUG) System, is intended to replace two of USMC's current systems to include the leather work glove/knit wool insert and insulated glove system for cold weather. The second system, the Extreme Cold Weather (ECW) Mitten System, is intended to replace the current USMC insulated trigger finger mitten system for cold weather. After review and evaluation of industry's submi ssions, the most promising candidate components may be procured for FY07 Marine fielding testing to determine if it warrants Marine Corps adoption. DESCRIPTION: The Marine Corps seeks products that meet the component requirements of the two glove systems outlined. (1) The USMC CUG system consists of a shell and light utility glove liner. CUG shell must be able to be worn alone or with the liner, provide flame resistance and non-melt/non-drip properties, good manual dexterity/tactility and grip better or e qual to the current, be waterproof yet breathable, have good durability to be used for heavy utility work including cut and abrasion resistance, will not freeze, good colorfastness to prevent dye transfer to hands, and a gauntlet length equal to the curren t (approx 1 1/2 inches). Basis of issue (BOI) will be 1 per Marine. CUG liner must be able to be worn alone or with the shell, provide flame resistance and non-melt/non-drip properties, have very good manual dexterity/tactility and grip, be water resistan t as well as fast drying, have good durability for light utility work to handle and manipulate smooth and rough objects, provide insulation for intermediate cold weather, will not freeze, have good colorfastness to prevent dye transfer to hands, and a gaun tlet length equal to the current (approx 3 inches). BOI will be 2 per Marine. Up to 2 CUG systems may be tested based upon component submissions. One candidate liner has already been selected; we will therefore be seeking up to 1 candidate liner. If te sting supports the adoption of CUG, it would be a system issued to every Marine from USMC Central Issue Facilities (CIF's). CIF full stock level is 206,000 systems (consisting of 1 shell/2liners). The quantity USMC would procure would be dependent on the phase in plan and available funding. (2) The USMC ECW Mitten System consists of a waterproof mitten shell, insulated mitten liners, and a contact glove. The Marine Corps has selected the mitten shell and liner candidate and one of two contact gloves for testing. We will therefore be seeking up to 1 candidate contact glove. This market survey seeks a traditional contact glove candidate as part of the ECW Mitten System and must provide maximum dexterity/tactility and grip, be form fitting, have non-melt/n on-drip properties, be fast drying, have a minimum gauntlet length of approximately 3 inches, prevent hands from freezing to metal, and provide protection from hot objects. BOI will be 3 per Marine. If testing supports adoption of the USMC ECW Mitten Sys tem, it would be issued as organizational equipment from USMC Special Training Allowance Pool (STAP) as required for unit training and deployment. The minimum STAP stock level will be 20,000 systems (consisting of 1 shell/2insu lated liners/1-3 contact gloves) and long term 40,000 systems dependent on phase in plan and available funding. GLOVE CANDIDATES: The Government requests interested suppliers identify gloves that are within their existing product line production capabilit ies, or can be easily modified to meet the required salient characteristics. Suppliers may submit one or more component; CUG shells, CUG liners and ECW Mitten contact gloves, or CUG system. To respond to this RFI, interested suppliers are REQUIRED to su bmit the following for each candidate to enable the Government to efficiently evaluate the viability and benefit of your proposed glove for the development of 2 USMC Glove Systems. Information will be handled as proprietary and samples will not be returne d. (1) Submissions must be labeled for the component that it is being recommended it fulfills. (2) Material Description, and if glove component is or could be Berry compliant if adopted. The supplier must identify the requirements it meets. If a supplier submits multiple products to fulfill a component, they must identify the advantage/disadvantage of competing products. (3) Provide estimated unit cost per pair. (4) Submit 5 pairs (in any color or print on hand) of various sizes including MED and LRG. (5) Describe other attributes that may not be apparent from material description provided and visual inspection of gloves. Initial samples submitted by interested suppliers are due NLT 23 June 2006 for Marine Corps review. If the Marine Corps is interested i n further evaluating a glove submission, the Government will procure additional samples for testing within 15 - 30 calendar days after initial submission. The Government expects to complete its detailed laboratory screening evaluation and select candidate gloves by 1 Sep 06 for delivery by 1 Nov 2006 in tan. Tan is the color which has been chosen to identify USMC handwear as FR/non-melt/drip. If the Marine Corps selects gloves for field testing, it is anticipated approximately 1,000 CUG Shells each (up t o 2 candidates) 2,000 CUG Liners (1 candidate), and 12,000 contact gloves (1 candidate) will be procured. Delivery of the contact glove will be needed by 1 Nov. Delivery of CUG components are desired by 1 Nov but required NLT 1 Dec 06. CONTACT: Direct questions and samples to:Jennifer Fernald Tel:
+1 (555) 000-0000 Email:
contact@example.gov. Mail samples to:U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center, Attn: J. Fernald (D-225), Kansas St, D-225 Natick, Ma 01760
