What the government is buying
Department of the Navy (Naval Air Warfare Center Air Div) has posted a sources sought notice on SAM.gov for Survival Vest Improvement System under solicitation number N00421-27-WPM202-SVSI. Responses are due October 22, 2026, 3:00 PM EDT.
From the notice: THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the Government. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary, and the Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the Government. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), Patuxent River, Maryland is requesting information and conducting market research to identify and determine if there are potential sources to manufacture and deliver a Survival Vest Improvement System (SVSI). SVSI is comprised of a new survival vest, VIPER, and a low-profile Life Preserver Unit, Serpent. VIPER is a NAVAIR ...
| Title | Survival Vest Improvement System |
|---|---|
| Agency | Department of the Navy |
| Office | Naval Air Warfare Center Air Div |
| Solicitation number | N00421-27-WPM202-SVSI |
| Notice type | Sources Sought |
| Set-aside | None stated in the notice |
| NAICS | 332510 |
| PSC | 4220 (Federal Supply Group 42: Fire Fighting, Rescue, and Safety Equipment) |
| Place of performance | Patuxent River, MD 20670 |
| Response due | October 22, 2026, 3:00 PM EDT |
| Point of contact | Amy Wescott, amy.l.wescott.civ@us.navy.mil |
| SAM.gov notice | https://sam.gov/opp/6c18cbb2c26a4f1e93e99aa33c26221a/view |
This page summarizes the public notice only. The complete solicitation, amendments, and attachments are posted on SAM.gov, and offerors should price from the full package.
How Wexmar would machine this
Based on the notice title and classification, Wexmar would plan this work around turning, horizontal milling, or Swiss turning depending on the geometry on the drawing, with the process set so critical features are cut in the fewest setups. Every lot is inspected against the drawing on Brown & Sharpe CMMs.
Equipment on the floor
- Turning: 10 Mazak and Doosan CNC lathes with live tooling
- Horizontal milling: 6 Mazak horizontal machining centers, 3- and 4-axis, with pallet changers
- Swiss: 4 Maier Swiss-type lathes, bar capacity to 32 mm
- Grinding: centerless and surface grinding
- Inspection: 2 Brown & Sharpe coordinate measuring machines
Materials
Material is set by the drawing. Wexmar machines carbon and alloy steels, stainless steels including precipitation-hardening grades, Inconel, Monel, Hastelloy, aluminum, brass, bronze, titanium, and engineering plastics, and buys bar and plate with mill certifications. Where DFARS 252.225-7009 applies, specialty metals are sourced from qualifying melt sources and the certifications travel with the parts.
Finishing and heat treatment
If the drawing calls for plating, anodizing, passivation, or heat treatment, Wexmar manages those steps through qualified outside processors and includes their certifications in the lot paperwork.
Documentation and registration
- First article inspection reports and CMM dimensional reports
- Material certifications traceable to heat lot, and certificates of conformance
- DFARS 252.225-7009 specialty metals sourcing
- ISO 9001-aligned quality system
- SAM.gov active, CAGE 16AD7, small business, woman-owned small business (WOSB)
Working with a prime or distributor
If your company is responding to N00421-27-WPM202-SVSI, Wexmar can price the machined content against the drawing revision and quantities in the notice, quote first article and production lots as separate lines when the notice separates them, and ship to you or directly to the government destination.
Send us the files
We can build this. Send us the files. Primes, integrators, and buyers: send the drawing package and quantity and Wexmar will quote it as your subcontractor or direct supplier. Upload a PDF or STEP for an instant estimate, email ron@backwell.com, or call (315) 400-2654.
Related: Build-to-print machining, Government and defense machining, DFARS specialty metals sourcing, Defense and DoD machining.