David Clark Company Incorporated

David Clark Company Incorporated, a for-profit manufacturer of specialized communication equipment and life support systems based in Worcester, Massachusetts, delivers headsets, microphones, protective acoustic gear, and spacesuit components to the Department of Defense and NASA as a prime contractor on over 4,700 awards, competing predominantly in full-and-open procurements across DLA, Air Force, and space programs.

The company's core capability footprint centers on audio and communication equipment for high-noise operational environments—headset-microphones, acoustic headsets, earphone elements, dynamic and capacitor microphones, and related components dominate the product portfolio at the DLA Land and Maritime division, which accounts for 3,725 awards valued at $296.2 million in combined potential value alone. David Clark also manufactures U-2 life support equipment, spacesuit components including helmet assemblies, glove bladder assemblies, and communications carrier assemblies for NASA Johnson Space Center, and satellite wave equipment for the Coast Guard. Representative named work includes a $20.7 million delivery order for U-2 life support from Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex (awarded September 2024, due December 2026), a $406,110 XEMU training softgoods task order from NASA Johnson Space Center (January 2025), a $799,992.95 headset-microphone purchase order from DLA Land and Maritime (September 2025), and a $3.4 million single-award IDC ceiling from DLA for headset-microphone supply (awarded March 2026, running through March 2031).

Customer concentration skews heavily toward DLA Land and Maritime logistics operations. The top five funding agencies account for 90% of combined potential value: Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex leads by dollars ($307.5 million across 55 awards), followed by DLA Land and Maritime ($296.2 million across 3,725 awards)—a pattern reflecting high-volume, modest-value replenishment orders mixed with occasional larger U-2 and life support task orders. DLA Lifecycle Management Center Robins Air Force Base, DLA proper, and DCMA round out the top five. Set-aside activity appears in the recent award flow: Total Small Business set-asides cluster in the DLA Land and Maritime headset-microphone work (multiple $250,000–$350,000 single-award IDCs awarded November 2025–February 2026, each carrying guaranteed minimums), though the vendor competes across full-and-open vehicles as well.

David Clark maintains five active parent indefinite-delivery vehicles: an $34.6 million single-award DLA IDC (awarded March 2026, running through March 2031) anchors the recent pipeline, along with three $350,000 Total Small Business IDCs from DLA Land and Maritime (November–December 2025) for capacitor microphones and headset-microphones, and a $250,000 Total Small Business vehicle (February 2026) for electrical headsets. Historical IDV volume was concentrated on SPM-series DLA vehicles carrying 985–467 task orders each, suggesting a long-standing, high-transaction relationship with DLA supply management.

Activity shows a multi-year decline: 136 awards in 2022 fell to 31 awards through April 2026. Within the next twenty-four months, twelve awards worth $33 million face completion, creating recompete exposure across DLA headset-microphone lines and Air Force life support work. The subsidiary Air-Lock, Incorporated holds or held small IDC positions with DLA for aerospace components and quick-disconnect systems.

On the labor side, David Clark carries 27 GSA Schedule labor categories ranging from $100.02/hr (Link Net Gridder, high school) to $337.05/hr (Program Manager, bachelor's, fifteen years' experience). Technical roles include Helmet Technician at $146.09/hr, Laboratory Technician at $127.92/hr, and Electrical Engineer at $234.80/hr—reflecting the company's hands-on manufacturing and technical-support posture. No security-cleared labor is offered.

Subcontract work is minimal (23 sub-awards, less than 1% of the portfolio). The disclosed sub-awards run to Boeing, SpaceX, and other commercial crew and NASA prime contractors for spacesuit components, helmet parts, and engineering labor supporting Johnson Space Center directorates—a niche role that complements rather than dominates the company's prime portfolio. David Clark functions as a component supplier and technical services provider within larger space and defense primes, not as a teaming partner driving competition.

SAFETY & PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT DESIGN & MANFACTURE. PATTERN DESIGN-GRADING, STITCHING, HEAT SEALING, MOLDING, MACHINING, ACOUSTICAL TESTING, CHEMICAL LABORATORY, SOLDERING, ELECTRONIC ASSEMBLE AND DESIGN