UNSPSC 25173120: Non-Directional Beacon (NDB)

A non-directional (radio) beacon (NDB) is a radio transmitter at a known location, used as an aviation or marine navigational aid. As the name implies, the signal transmitted does not include inherent directional information, in contrast to other navigational aids such as low frequency radio range, VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) and TACAN. NDB signals follow the curvature of the Earth, so they can be received at much greater distances at lower altitudes, a major advantage over VOR.

However, NDB signals are also affected more by atmospheric conditions, mountainous terrain, coastal refraction and electrical storms, particularly at long range.

UNSPSC 25173120 Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) is a Commodity code that shows minimal recent state and local procurement activity directly aligned with its nominal scope. The recent opportunities block contains no solicitations for navigation beacons, radio navigation aids, or related aviation or maritime instrumentation systems. Instead, the tagged opportunities span water quality monitoring instruments, pressure gauges, electrical components, laboratory testing services, SCADA systems, atmospheric monitoring equipment, and miscellaneous capital projects—none of which correspond to NDB procurement. The code's actual purchasing pattern in state and local markets is not evident from the current opportunity set.

The absence of NDB-specific solicitations signals either that state and local agencies procure these systems infrequently, through federal GSA schedules or cooperative purchasing vehicles outside this dataset, or that the tagging may reflect a data classification artifact rather than active demand. Without representative recent RFPs, RFQs, ITBs, or IFBs naming NDB hardware or services, issuing-body concentration, geographic activity hotspots, and contract-value ranges cannot be characterized. Firms evaluating pursuit under this code should validate demand through direct outreach to state transportation departments, aviation authorities, and coastal or Great Lakes agencies that operate navigation systems, rather than relying on this code's current posting pattern.