Presentation to Textile Industry Coalition on Government Procurement

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• Presentation to Textile Industry Coalition on
  Government Procurement
• Charlotte, NC
• 21 Oct 08

Lieutenant Colonel Mike Ross UK Defence Clothing
Integrated Project Team mross999_at_gmail.com
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Aim

• Explain how UK MOD goes about procurement of
  clothing for the armed forces
• Defence Clothing IPT
• General principles
• Significant current issues
• Contracting with MOD

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Defence Clothing IPT

• 250k customers, 18k items
• 120M spent annually
• 32k personnel annually on operations

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Defence Clothing IPT

• Our Vision
• Confidence in Logistics

• Our Mission
• To deliver the clothing capability for
  operations

• Our Strategic Objectives
• To reduce the unit cost of output
• To continually satisfy our customers
• The effective management of human resources
• To continually seek business process
  improvements

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What do I do?
Self Image
Reality
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Balancing Expectation and Capability

• CUSTOMER
• EXPECTATION
• Constant availability
• Rapid delivery
• No warning time
• Surge on demand
• Change his mind

• CONTRACTOR CAPABILITY
• Capacity
• Lead time
• Sunk costs
• Sub-contracting
• Regulated production

The greater the expectation, the greater the cost
or the poorer the service
DC IPT

• Acts as Intelligent Customer
• Design Authority
• Translates military need
• Targeted use of enablers, eg Consultants

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Procurement Philosophies

• Reduce number of contracts
• Supplier Based Optimisation (SBO) Contracts
• Footwear
• Cut and Sew
• Taped Seam
• New Clothing Solution
• Outsourced production and services
• Reverse auctions
• Level playing field for all EU countries
• Sustainable procurement

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New Clothing Solution Internet Ordering Pilot
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New Clothing Solution Inventory Management

• Prime contractor takes greater control of
  inventory
• Reduced requirement for MOD to hold stock
• Delivery is direct to serviceman
• Only limited stock held for operational purposes
• Better capture of sizing and consumption data
• Loss of agility?
• Visibility of costs?

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Current Issues

• Lightening the Load
• Body armour and helmets
• Electrical conductivity
• Moores Law does not apply to batteries
• Modularity
• The capability triangle
• Commanders with brains and balls
• Fire Resistant / Retardant clothing
• Chemical Resistance
• PECOC Personal Equipment and Common Operational
  Clothing
• Bearskin

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Ceremonial - Bearskin
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Capability Triangle
Survivability
Mobility
Lethality
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PECOC Personal Equipment and Common Operational
Clothing
The PECOC capability shall provide the clothing
and equipment necessary for individual service
personnel operating as part of a deployed force
to survive and operate in both their natural and
their operating environment in order to achieve
their mission.

• Integrated system
• Using operational experience
• In Service 2011

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PECOC - Major Project Stages
Concept Demonstrator (CD) Trials
Op Analysis
Roadshow
CD Down Select
Prototype Manufacture
Prototype trials
Op Analysis
Main Gate Approval Prep
Main Gate Final Approval
Manufacture/ distribute 8000 sets
Contract Work
User Trial/Training
In Service Date
Feb 08
Jul 08
Dec 10
May 09
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The Modular Approach for all users

• PECOC will mitigate the constraints of the human
  frame by allowing the soldier to optimise his
  load, mobility and agility for each task. It
  will provide integrated modular solutions for
• Ballistic Package
• Body Armour
• Helmet
• Eyewear
• Load Carriage
• Environmental Clothing Systems
• Factors are
• Allows soldiers and their commanders to optimise
  their equipment for the specific mission
• Classify all PECOC Users as a single group based
  on the Infantryman
• Allows a coherent mid life update, technology
  insertion and rapid integration of operationally
  specific components

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Contracting with MOD

• Very few areas are protected
• Required to open up most procurement to EU
• Website
• www.contracts.mod.uk

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MOD Defence Contracts Bulletin
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What is it all about?