Para-Gear Equipment Co

Para-Gear Equipment Co., a Skokie, Illinois-based small business, manufactures and supplies parachute systems, components, and related equipment to the Department of Defense and federal agencies as a prime contractor across 444 awards with combined potential value of $26.3 million. The company operates exclusively as a prime (100% of awards), competing predominantly full-and-open rather than under set-aside categories, though approximately 40–45 percent of recent purchase orders carry small business set-aside designations.

Para-Gear's capability footprint centers on parachute equipment manufacturing and supply: main and reserve canopies, harnesses, containers, deployment bags, rip cords, bridles, altimeter-barometers, oxygen kits, pilot chutes, ground training units, and specialized components such as risers, pins, wire rope assemblies, and stow lines. Representative recent work includes a $749,970 total small business set-aside definitive contract with Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (awarded May 2025) for ram air parachute systems; a $313,676 total small business set-aside purchase order with the Department of the Navy (awarded July 2025) for MFP-2 Paraloft Non-Tactical Parachute System support; a $284,350 purchase order with Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support Construction and Equipment (awarded October 2025) for 22 ground training units; and a $194,524 total small business set-aside BPA call with Air Force Academy (awarded March 2026) for brand-name parachute and parachute equipment. The company also holds a $4 million multiple-award Blanket Purchase Agreement with Air Force Academy through July 2029 for ongoing parachute and equipment procurement supporting cadet training operations.

Customer concentration is moderate and geographically distributed across multiple defense entities. The Air Force Academy dominates by dollar value, with 52 awards worth $10.6 million (40% of combined potential value), anchored by the $4 million BPA vehicle. Defense Logistics Agency Aviation places the most awards by count (81 awards), generating $3.6 million in combined potential value across individual purchase orders for components such as altimeter-barometers, rip cords, risers, and deployment bags. U.S. Special Operations Command accounts for 43 awards valued at $2.3 million, reflecting demand for specialized parachute systems and non-standard configurations. Army organizations (multiple commands and RDECOM) contribute $1.3 million across 37 awards. DLA Land and Maritime holds a smaller footprint (18 awards, $976 thousand) focused on battery chargers and support equipment alongside parachute-related items. In total, the top five customers by potential value account for 71 percent of combined potential value across 222 awards.

Para-Gear's parent vehicle position is anchored by the $4 million Air Force Academy BPA (Blanket Purchase Agreement FA700019AA005), which has generated 20 task orders worth $2 million in combined potential value. The company also holds single-award Indefinite Delivery Contracts with Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime ($350,000 ceiling, awarded April 2026, for battery chargers) and with DLA Land and Maritime and DLA Aviation (both $250,000 ceilings for battery chargers and parachute risers respectively, awarded February 2025 and August 2023). These IDCs enable streamlined procurement and recurring task order activity across the defense supply chain.

Activity has grown steadily over the past five years: 15 awards in 2022, 36 in 2023, 38 in 2024, and 46 in 2025, with 5 awards recorded in 2026 year-to-date. Six awards reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months with combined potential value of $815 thousand, presenting modest recompete exposure. The vendor competes across 51 distinct federal agencies, with the vast majority of work concentrated in parachute equipment and components (251 awards under PSC Parachutes; Aerial Pick Up, Delivery, Recovery Systems; and Cargo Tie Down Equipment), along with smaller volumes in safety and rescue equipment, athletic and sporting goods, and training devices. All work is performed at Para-Gear's Skokie facility with no identified subcontractors across the prime footprint, indicating fully integrated manufacturing and fulfillment operations.

Para-Gear has been supplying the world with Parachutes and Skydiving Equipment since 1960, and now sells to more than 150 countries from all over the world. The largest selection of parachutes and skydiving products in the world.