ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MD – Project Manager Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PM PNT) awarded a five-year, $318 million firm fixed-price, sole-source contract to BAE Systems (BAE) on September 28, to provide military code (M-code) Global Positioning System (GPS) embeddable cards and related engineering services for PM PNT’s Mounted and Dismounted Assured PNT systems (i.e., MAPS and DAPS, respectively). The contract marks an important step for the U.S. Army toward achieving modernized, M-code-capable procurement as directed by Congress.
The Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity contract awarded through the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization gives PM PNT a direct link to the vendor, reducing administrative time for both PM PNT and external customers, enabling more efficient technical support and integration, encouraging programmatic dialog, and providing a development framework for future software updates that will benefit the entire Army.
Until now, PM PNT procured M-code cards through various external contracts, some via the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), which meant significant passthrough costs and reduced buying power for the both the organization and its customers. With the IDIQ contract, PM PNT will have access to a direct supply source for its MAPS and DAPS systems as well as other DoD programs that leverage MAPS and DAPS capabilities.
“Because BAE Systems’ M-Code cards are currently the only tested and validated hardware compatible with MAPS and DAPS, it made sense to partner with them on this IDIQ contract,” said Michael Trzeciak, Project Manager PNT. “The contract facilitates procurement of multiple variants of the M-code card – meeting end system compatibility requirements for Mounted and Dismounted APNT solutions now and into the future.”
This partnership leverages an existing government-owned stockpile of Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) chips at no additional cost, lessening the supply risk associated with the ASIC chip supply limitations. It will also enable consolidated orders and facilitate quantity discounts, furthering cost savings.