Ashley Cushon

Ashley Cushon serves as a key procurement lead within the W6QK Acc-apg Natick office under the Department of the Army, supporting the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s mission to enhance soldier systems through advanced materiel development. Responsible for managing technical acquisitions in specialized textile and fabric manufacturing, Cushon oversees the procurement of mission-critical protective gear, flame-resistant combat uniforms, and engineered textile components essential for battlefield survivability. Their work directly enables the fielding of next-generation soldier systems by ensuring timely delivery of high-performance, military-specification materials that meet rigorous environmental and durability standards. Cushon maintains consistent contracting relationships with EPERNAY DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION LLC and TEVET LLC, both of which provide specialized narrow fabric manufacturing and embroidered tactical components. These partnerships reflect a pattern of sustained collaboration with niche industrial vendors possessing deep expertise in Schiffli machine embroidery, high-tensile fabric weaving, and integrated protective layering technologies. The working relationship is characterized by technical alignment, iterative prototyping support, and a focus on supply chain resilience for low-volume, high-complexity production runs. Cushon’s procurement portfolio exhibits no set-aside preferences, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects a strategic emphasis on technical capability over socioeconomic classification, prioritizing vendor proficiency in military textile standards over programmatic diversity targets. While small business participation is not formally incentivized, the nature of the NAICS focus inherently supports specialized small manufacturers with niche production capabilities. The primary NAICS classification 313220 (Narrow Fabric Mills and Schiffli Machine Embroidery) dominates all acquisitions, underscoring deep expertise in technical textiles for defense applications. Procurements center on woven, knitted, and embroidered fabrics with integrated ballistic, thermal, and moisture-management properties, supporting the development of advanced combat uniforms, load-bearing equipment, and embedded sensor platforms. Cushon’s domain knowledge is rooted in military textile engineering and the application of commercial fabric technologies to stringent DoD performance requirements.