UMS Metal Fabricators Inc.

UMS Metal Fabricators Inc., a small business manufacturer of steel ocean buoys, buoy parts, modular towers, and maritime signaling equipment, operates as a 100% prime contractor (211 awards, no sub activity) under total small business set-aside on its core indefinite delivery contract with the U.S. Coast Guard and competes predominantly under small business set-asides across federal maritime procurement. UMS Metal Fabricators is a subsidiary of Universal Marine Services Inc., headquartered in Mobile, Alabama, where all fabrication and delivery operations are performed under NAICS 332111 (Fabricated Structural Metal Manufacturing) and PSC 3431 (Marine Hardware and Equipment).

Customer concentration is acute: the Coast Guard accounts for 181 of 191 awards (91% of award count) and $185.9 million of $199.7 million in combined potential value (94% by dollars). The remaining federal footprint is minimal—the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation holds 6 awards ($2 million), the Department of the Navy and its subordinate commands hold 4 awards ($171 thousand combined), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers holds 1 award ($63,687). UMS Metal Fabricators has worked with the Coast Guard as a prime contractor continuously since at least 2006.

The vendor's vehicle position rests on five Coast Guard indefinite delivery contracts. The primary vehicle, a $29.95 million single-award IDC (70Z08423DWOPL0001, August 2023–August 2028, total small business set-aside), has generated 34 documented delivery orders worth $15.7 million. Three older IDCs remain active: HSCG8413DBHQ002 (58 task orders, $12.3 million obligated), 70Z08418DBHQ00100 (43 task orders, $26.3 million obligated), and HSCG2306DECB018 (40 task orders, $16.5 million obligated). A fifth vehicle, HSCG8711DPJT057, carries 5 task orders worth $260 thousand. Delivery orders are issued as fixed-price or fixed-price-with-economic-price-adjustment structures keyed to steel and diesel fuel costs, reflecting commodity sensitivity in buoy manufacturing.

Representative recent prime work includes a $1.573 million delivery order (September 2026) for modular tower fabrication and delivery to various Coast Guard units nationwide under the primary IDC; a $1.608 million order (June 2026) for buoy parts delivered to seven locations including San Francisco; a $2.086 million order (September 2024) for steel ocean buoys; a $1.943 million order (May 2024) for steel ocean buoys and maritime infrastructure components; and a $1.822 million firm fixed-price purchase order (February 2023) from the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation for 72 all-season buoys fabricated to Coast Guard specification, including lighting, radar reflectors, and battery systems rated for ice entrapment. All work is performed in Mobile, Alabama, with distribution to Coast Guard locations nationwide (Gulf Coast, Atlantic, Hawaii) and overseas (San Juan, Puerto Rico).

Activity has been consistent year-over-year (8 awards in 2022 through 11 in 2026, averaging 9 per year), with 9 awards (combined potential value $6.1 million) facing ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months and therefore exposed to recompete. Award content is heavily concentrated in buoys (196 of 199 awards by PSC, 186 by NAICS plate-work category). The vendor has obligated $80.1 million of its $199.7 million combined potential value across all awards (40% realization rate), reflecting the phased nature of delivery orders issued against indefinite vehicles.