SD-2 Dod Acquisitions Buying Commercial Items And Nondevelopmental ItemsThis document offers guidance on acquisitions involving all types of commercial and nondevelopmental items: systems, subsystems, assemblies, parts, and items of supply. Commercial services are also addressed.This document does not present a “cookbook” approach to the acquisition of commercial and nondevelopmental items; such an approach could not accommodate the vast array of potential applications. It does offer lessons learned and things to consider when participating on an integrated product team.

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Identify  Candidate  Commercial and  Nondevelopmental  Items

After operational requirements have been defined, a design engineer specifies the detailed re- quirements and turns them over to a parts/components engineer who identifies specific com- mercial items or NDIs that will satisfy the requirements.This activity requires tactical market research.Tactical market research is a focused effort designed to answer specific questions about the market, suppliers, products, services, and so on.The first step is to develop a list of potential suppliers. One source is the procurement activity, which may have lists of suppliers for the same or similar products. Another important source is the Internet, which can be searched for poten- tial suppliers and industry associations that can provide information. (For detailed information about tactical market research techniques, see SD-5, Market Research: Gathering InJormation About Commercial Products and Services.)

Potential suppliers should be contacted to determine whether they produce commercial or nondevelopmental items that could satisfy the requirements and, if so, to gather detailed techni- cal information about those items. Industry input on product descriptions and statements of work can help clarify technical aspects and reveal alternative ways to meet requirements. (Appendix C contains a discussion of product descriptions.) Avenues for obtaining industry input include

•  draft solicitations issued before the formal solicitation and

•  coordination with industry of draft product descriptions and statements of work.

Before soliciting information from suppliers, the IPT should seek input from the various DoD functional discipline proponents and independent testers, as well as from technical experts.These entities can provide the IPT with questions to be answered during the market investigation. Specific questions about performance, operation, and design features need to be asked because they must be addressed during test and evaluation of candidate items. For example, the design characteristics must be evaluated in terms of supportability and compatibil- ity with support equipment.The following are some other questions concerning commercial availability:

•  Can the market supply and support DoD's needs for the entire life of the end product?

•  Are the commercial suppliers stable, or are changes in ownership or business arrangements likely to make an existing commercial product obsolete in the future?

•  Is the item in a growth and development phase, or does the commercial producer plan to phase it out relatively soon?

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