UMS Metal Fabricators Inc.

UMS Metal Fabricators Inc., a subsidiary of Universal Marine Services Inc. based in Mobile, Alabama, manufactures and delivers steel ocean buoys, buoy parts, modular towers, and maritime signaling equipment to the U.S. Coast Guard as a prime contractor under 100 percent small business set-asides and unrestricted delivery orders. The company is a for-profit, small business manufacturer operating under NAICS 332111 (Fabricated Structural Metal Manufacturing) and PSC Buoys, with all work performed at its Mobile, Alabama facility.

UMS Metal Fabricators' customer footprint is heavily concentrated with the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Coast Guard, which accounts for 175 of 205 total prime awards (90% of award count) and $181 million of the combined potential value of $194.8 million (94% of dollars). The Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (Department of Transportation) represents the second-largest customer with 6 awards and $2 million combined potential value; the Department of the Navy, Navy Installations Command, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers round out the active customer set with minimal volume. The top two customers anchor both volume and dollars — Coast Guard concentration is the defining feature of the portfolio.

The company's primary vehicle is a $29.3 million single-award indefinite delivery contract with the Coast Guard (HSCG8413DBHQ002, awarded August 2023, running through August 2028), designated as a 100 percent small business set-aside. From this primary IDC, UMS Metal Fabricators has issued 58 delivery orders with a combined potential value of $12.3 million. Three additional Coast Guard indefinite delivery contracts (70Z08418DBHQ00100 valued at $26.3 million across 43 task orders; HSCG2306DECB018 valued at $16.5 million across 40 task orders; and 70Z08423DWOPL0001 valued at $11.4 million across 28 task orders) represent substantial recurring procurement vehicles. Delivery orders drawn from these vehicles carry fixed-price terms with economic price adjustment provisions keyed to steel and diesel fuel costs, reflecting the commodity-sensitive nature of buoy fabrication. Representative recent work includes a $2.09 million delivery order for steel ocean buoys (September 2024), a $1.94 million order for steel ocean buoys and infrastructure components (May 2024), a $797.7 thousand order for ATON towers (January 2025), a $701.1 thousand order for 39 modular towers distributed to Gulf Coast and Atlantic locations (January 2026), and a $1.82 million purchase order from the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation for 72 all-season ice-capable buoys (February 2023).

Activity has declined modestly from historical levels: eight awards in 2022, ten in 2023, nine in 2024, seven in 2025, and five through mid-2026. Over the period covered by the source, UMS Metal Fabricators has obligated $75.9 million against a combined potential value of $194.8 million (39% realization rate). Only four awards with combined potential value of $2.5 million reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, limiting near-term recompete exposure on the primary Coast Guard vehicle, which does not expire until August 2028. The vendor operates exclusively as a prime contractor (100% of awards) with no subcontract activity in the source data. Award concentration, vehicle concentration, and customer concentration together signal a single-customer, single-product business — UMS Metal Fabricators is the Coast Guard's designated small business supplier for maritime aids to navigation equipment, with minimal diversification across agencies, vehicle types, or capability areas.