In This Week’s Newsletter:
- Opportunity Spotlight of the Week: DAF TETRAS III
- Four To Follow: Four Interesting Pursuits
- Capture Corner: Capture Methodology: The Attack Strategy
- Pricing Insights: PTW for Set-Aside Opportunities
Opportunity Alert – DAF TETRAS III
Contact Katie: katie.clatterbuck@hinzconsulting.com
Department of the Air Force, Test and Evaluation Technologies for Ranges, Armaments, and Spectrum III (TETRAS III).
On June 11, 2026, the Air Force Test Center at Eglin Air Force Base released a draft RFP, posted on SAM.gov as a Special Notice, serving as the official presolicitation, for the multiple-award recompete of the TETRAS contract vehicle. The effort provides test and evaluation technologies, instrumentation, infrastructure, and technical expertise in support of Range, Armament, and Spectrum requirements, with security requirements ranging from confidential to top secret. Questions, comments, and feedback on the draft documentation are due no later than June 26, 2026. The final RFP for this $999M Full and Open/Unrestricted IDIQ is anticipated for release on or about October 27, 2026, with an estimated award in June 2028. Reach out to Hinz Consulting for any Capture Management, Competitive Analysis, Graphics, Price to Win, or Proposal support, and continue to monitor SAM.gov for any updates in the procurement timeline.
Four to Follow
- Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), Endpoint Security Event Management System (ESEMS). In June 2026, DISA posted a sources-sought notice for the Endpoint Security Event Management System on behalf of the Project Manager, Command and Control Infrastructure, and the Network Enterprise Technology Command. The contractor would operate and secure a global endpoint ecosystem for the Department of War Information Network for the Army using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint and Elastic Defend, orchestrate the Comply to Connect framework for network access control, and build a hybrid-cloud security information and event management ecosystem across the Regional Cyber Centers and a Government-provided Azure environment, in support of the Army’s Zero Trust objectives. DISA anticipates an IDIQ with an estimated $850M ceiling over a two-year base and eight one-year option periods. Responses to the sources sought are due June 29, 2026. The solicitation is estimated for release in September 2026, with an estimated award in March 2027, and the competition type is currently unknown. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for any updates on this opportunity.
- Department of the Army, Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense Increment 3 (M-SHORAD Inc 3), Next Generation Short-Range Interceptor (NGSRI) Production. On June 4, 2026, Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal released a Sources Sought RFI on behalf of Project Manager SHIELD to identify sources able to manufacture the NGSRI weapon system, a soldier-portable, fire and forget, surface-to-air missile that defeats rotary-wing, fixed-wing, and Group 2 and Group 3 unmanned aircraft system threats as the follow-on to the FIM-92 Stinger. The effort supports Low-Rate Initial Production and Full Rate Production and is also expected to cover Total Package Fielding, training, contractor logistics support, test support, and engineering services. The Army plans to produce 11,000 NGSRI missiles and 2,200 Control Launch Assemblies over a ten-year period beginning in FY28, with the program transitioning to a Major Capability Acquisition at Milestone C as an ACAT II effort. Responses are due July 6, 2026. The competition type is currently unknown. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for further movement on this effort.
- Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Cyber Technology Services (CTS). Per a June 2026 update to its Acquisition Planning Forecast System (APFS) record, CISA has identified a new requirement to provide Cyber Technology Services to support the Cybersecurity Division’s Office of Threat Hunting. The scope spans IT architecture, development operations, IT security operations, and operations and maintenance to support 24x7x365 incident response and proactive hunting missions under a DevSecOps model, organized across eight task areas. The effort is estimated at more than $100M, is competed on an unrestricted basis among GSA Schedule holders, and would be awarded as a Time and Materials order. The anticipated solicitation release is on or about May 1, 2027, with award projected in the fourth quarter of FY27. Continue to monitor SAM.gov and your eBuy portals for any updates on this opportunity.
- Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Public Assistance Technical Assistance Contract VI (PA-TAC VI). PA-TAC VI is FEMA’s Advisory and Assistance Services follow-on to the PA-TAC V vehicle, managed through the Public Assistance Division to supplement Public Assistance activities following presidentially declared disasters under both Stafford Act and non-Stafford Act authorities. The contractor will provide qualified personnel nationwide, with work spanning Consolidated Resource Center support, claims validation, and cost estimating, as well as national-level mission support such as training, planning, and project management. The Government plans to select up to five vendors, each staffing up to 100 personnel, under a base period and four option periods. The final RFP is expected to be released in July 2026, with an award in September 2026. The competition type is currently unknown, and the contract value is to be determined. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for any updates on this opportunity.
Capture Methodology: The Attack Strategy
Contact John: john.amoriello@hinzconsulting.com
An Attack Strategy is a proactive framework designed to position your organization to win a competitive opportunity—particularly when you are not the incumbent provider. The primary objective is to displace the competition by shaping customer perception and seamlessly aligning your solution with their core mission and strategic goals.
A high-level framework for a successful attack strategy relies on six core capture principles:
1. Deep Customer Intelligence
- Comprehensive understanding of the customer’s mission, vision, immediate priorities, and long-term goals.
- Clear identification of their operational pain points, business drivers, and decision-making criteria.
2. Competitive Positioning
- Critical analysis of the weaknesses of both the incumbent provider and your top two competitors.
- Highlighted organizational advantages, paired with targeted tactics and counter-tactics to establish market differentiation.
3. Solution & Product Alignment
- Development of a tailored solution designed to meet or exceed the customer’s technical requirements and mission goals.
- Strategic leverage of differentiators—such as technical innovation, rapid speed-to-value, and past performance references of similar size, scale, scope, and complexity.
4. Shaping the Opportunity
- Active efforts to influence the Request for Proposal (RFP) requirements before its official public release.
- Strategic deployment of customer engagement initiatives, including targeted white papers, capability briefings, and executive presentations.
5. Customer Engagement & Advocacy
- Focused trust-building with key decision-makers and the establishment of strong executive alignment.
- Mobilization of favorable internal stakeholders to positively influence the buying process.
- Tangible demonstration of long-term commitment to the customer’s mission and business outcomes.
6. Price-to-Win (PTW) Strategy
- Development and delivery of a highly competitive, fully compliant pricing model that articulates a compelling value proposition.
PTW for Set-Aside Opportunities
Contact Dr. Tom: thomas.hudgins@hinzconsulting.com
In small business set-aside competitions, it can be tempting to assume “everyone prices like us.” That assumption is dangerous. Even within the same NAICS, small businesses carry very different cost structures, risk appetites, and growth pressures. Some are building infrastructure and need healthier margins; others are hungry for wins and are willing to accept thinner contributions in the near term. PTW for set-asides is about understanding that spread and deciding where your business can reasonably sit inside a likely winning price range.
Set-asides also change the competitive mix. You are not facing large integrators, but you may be competing against firms with lower overhead or different salary strategies. That does not mean you must match the lowest possible price. Instead, PTW should help you gauge how aggressive the field is likely to be, then balance competitiveness with your real wrap rate and cash-flow needs. The key question is not “Do small businesses all price the same?” They clearly do not. The better question is “Given how other small firms might price, what is our price to win that still keeps us healthy?”
- July 1-2nd: American Small Business Contracting Summit in Reston, VA
- July 30th: 2026 Air and Space Summit in McLean, VA
- August 27th: 2026 Navy Summit 27th in Falls Church, VA
- September 24th: 2026 Intel Summit in Falls Church, VA