JA_SPRDL122R0078_Redacted.pdf

JA-00505 - SPRDL1-22-R-0078

Previous J&A: SPRDL1-09-R-0124 cylinder was designed by Grove to integrate with the crane assembly.

Oshkosh is the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for the PLS truck. Oshkosh developed the system level requirements for the cylinder and own the technical data rights for it. Grove is the manufacturer of the cylinder and the crane that the cylinder is used on. The cylinder and crane were designed by Grove to meet the system level requirements. Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC) Engineering confirmed that both Grove part number 6-372-003659 and Oshkosh part number 2HE951 are valid part numbers for this procurement.

Grove designed and tested the cylinder assembly at its own expense, and the Technical Data Package (TDP) was not procured by the Government. The technical data is proprietary to the original approved sources. The Government purchases this part as an assembly and does not know the exact performance characteristics of the cylinder assembly. Some of the materials, components, and certifications are unknown. The approved sources are the only vendors that possess the technical data necessary to manufacture the cylinder. The Government does not have rights to the TDP or specifications.

Other manufacturers offer similar cylinder assemblies, but alternatives would not be identical and would not have been extensively tested on the specified weapon system.

Cylinder assemblies contain many internal components, which must be assembled to complete the part. These parts are manufactured with many different materials, so the material analysis necessary for the entire assembly would be quite extensive.

Additionally, each part is manufactured with specific tolerances, which would be difficult to determine, especially for small components.

Using an alternative part would introduce technical risk to the performance of the crane assembly because the alternative would not have had rigorous developmental and operational tests in the exact application and configuration. The technical data for this cylinder is proprietary to Grove and Oshkosh and is unavailable to the Government or commercial manufacturers. Since it is provided as one component of the crane assembly on the vehicle, no component-level technical information is available to describe the performance specifications and mounting information for the cylinder.

Since Grove is the manufacturer of the crane, which is the next higher assembly for the cylinder, the company is uniquely qualified to integrate, test, and qualify the components that make up the crane assembly. If the part fails, the crane assembly, and thus the vehicle, may be unable to complete its mission. Without proper verification, the boom could experience a malfunction, resulting in the mishandling of the load or the crane’s boom, posing a safety risk to personnel and equipment.

The GVSC Heavy Tactical Vehicle Sustainment Team has estimated that reverse engineering this cylinder would cost an estimated minimum of $500,000.00 with a lead time of 8 months for Research and Development (R&D), comprising of design, development, and production. In addition, it would have to undergo qualification and integration testing, which would have an additional lead time of 6 months and cost an additional estimated minimum of $250,000.00. To procure this cylinder competitively, a

JA-00505 - SPRDL1-22-R-0078

Previous J&A: SPRDL1-09-R-0124

7. Actions to Increase Competition: There are no plans to increase competition for future procurements due to the reasons cited above.

There are no contractors currently in the process of being qualified as an alternate source of supply for this item. At this time, there are no current or planned efforts to qualify additional sources since the Government does not possess a fully defined and validated TDP for this item. The source of supply, Grove, owns the detailed technical data regarding this item.

8. Market Research: A Sources Sought Notice was posted to SAM.gov on 4/25/2022 and was open for 15 days. An assessment of the responses received is below:

One response offering the approved part number 6-372-003659 (CAGE 12361) was received from Allied Defense Industries (CAGE 0GD25). No responses were received from a source interested in qualifying an alternate part number as a replacement for part number 6-372-003659 (CAGE 12361) or part number 2HE951 (CAGE 75Q65).

Computer-based market research was conducted by the GVSC Engineer during April of 2022. Actuating cylinders offered by Eaton, Danfoss, Caterpillar, and Parker Hannifin were reviewed. In summary, there is not enough information to determine whether these options will fit in the Grove crane on the PLS truck in the same manner as the sole-source part. Due to the lack of a TDP or in-depth technical specifications of the sole-source part, the validity of the researched cylinders is difficult to determine.

Keywords searched: cylinder assembly, lift cylinder, hydraulic cylinder, and Grove crane cylinder

The vendors listed above all offer many cylinder assemblies, but almost all are application specific. Eaton and Parker Hannifin both have a customization tool to design cylinders based on the bore size and stroke length, but the Government does not know this information about the Grove cylinder because it is proprietary, so further research could not be completed. In addition to the bore size and stroke length, mounting and connection information would be needed to down select the available options. Through visual comparison of the cylinder from the Army technical manual to the researched cylinders, none of the commercially available parts researched appear to be identical in mounting locations, size, or shape. Due to the internal components of the assembly, even a cylinder that appears the same externally can vary greatly in performance or capability. The operating pressure range of the cylinder, and thus the load capacity, are also not known. Several vendors offer a part number cross-reference tool to discover if an equivalent part is available commercially, but a search for the Grove and Oshkosh part numbers was unsuccessful.

As a result of market research, it was concluded that the Government does not have enough detailed technical information to determine the suitability of other commercially available parts or use a customization tool to identify an additional manufacturer. This confirms that the sole-source providers are the only vendors who possess the technical information and system level requirements to qualify the part for this application.