Request for Information– Navy Clothing and Textile Research Facility

 Fabrics, CLOTH, KNITTED, POLYESTER, SWISS PIQUE for use in the Navy Physical Training T-Shirt

Product Service Code:          8415 – Clothing, Special Purpose                                                 

NAICS Code:                        3133 – Textile and Fabric Finishing and Fabric Coating Mill

Background:  The Navy Clothing and Textile Research Facility (NCTRF) is conducting a market survey to determine the availability of domestic knitted swiss pique fabrics for use as the basic material in the Navy’s physical training t-shirt. The most promising fabrics will be down selected and subjected to physical property testing.  Successful fabrics may be used in future physical training uniform procurements.

Description:  NCTRF seeks to identify materials for use in physical training t-shirt.  The fabric should be a knitted swiss pique and be able to be produced in blue 3389 and incorporate a moisture wicking finish.  The material will also need to be capable of adhering Navy specific heat transfer logos to the material. The material should be capable of meeting or exceeding the physical and performance characteristics outlined in Table I (see attached document).  The material must be able to be made into a set-in sleeve t-shirt without any workmanship issues with the sewing and/or logo adhesion.

Interested Parties:  To respond to this request for information (RFI), interested parties are REQUIRED to submit the following to enable NCTRF to conduct physical property testing and determine suitability for end use:

1. A cover sheet that identifies the interested party, their cage code, their business size under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), their technical point of contact (TPOC), and contact information (email and phone number) for the TPOC.
2. Material Submission

1. A minimum of 5 yards full width material.
2. A material description, to include: (fiber percentage), yarn structure (denier, yarns per inch, twists per inch, ply and twist), knit structure, pre-shrunk and performance characteristics, production lead time, production locations (fiber, yarn, knitting and finishing). Complete disclosure of chemical treatment if using topical finish, applicable Safety Data Sheets (SDS) and documentation for Berry Amendment, 10 USC 2533a, and compliance is required.
3. Technical data sheet(s) and applicable test reports for the material properties listed in Table I.
4. Anticipated lead-time to deliver yardage.
5. An estimated cost per yard (specify width of material), which may be broken down by quantity reflecting economies of scale.
6. Country of Origin of material
7. Information which certifies that the finished product is composed of materials which have been safely used commercially or provide sufficient toxicity data to show compatibility with prolonged, direct skin contact. The finished cloth shall not present a dermal health hazard when used as intended.

Required documentation and fabric yardage shall be submitted to NCTRF no later than COB 28 JUN 2024.  Information will be handled as proprietary, and samples will not be returned.

Contact Information:  Please submit responses to this RFI to both Roseanna Nastasia Navy Clothing and Textile Research Facility, 10 General Greene Ave, Bldg. 86, Natick, MA 01760-5019, 508-206-2759, [email protected] and Kelly Fratelli, 508-206-2762, [email protected].