This report says nothing of the loss of nearly 50% of the US Small to Medium Manufacturers (SMM) over the last 10 years actively participating in the mission critical Defense Industrial Base (DIB) … only discussing concerns of consolidation of $XXXB OEMs completely misses the single major issue impacting DoW global weapon system combat readiness: Product Support and Materiel Availability … although the OEMs own the major weapon system Prime Contracts, they are all 100% reliant on the same population of US SMMs …. the entire US DoW Diminishing Manufacturing Sources of Material Supply (DMSMS) program needs to be flipped to a ‘Bottom Up’ program, solving very real sustainment issues beginning with the smallest, most vulnerable SMM participants underpinning the entire DoW O / I / D level sustainment enterprise. And don’t leave out an objectively measured assessment of the significant impact the mandatory Audited CMMC Lvl II flow down requirement is going to have on the remaining SMM participants, and in turn the OEMs relying on them! #DMSMS #SlowBid #NoBid #CMMC #OEM #SMM #MRO Office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Sustainment // National Defense Industrial Association - (NDIA) // NCMS – National Center for Manufacturing Sciences https://lnkd.in/e2wvwXFi
Dean Bartles
3mo
Paul—this is exactly right, and thank you for calling it out so clearly. The conversation around DIB risk too often stops at OEM consolidation, when the far more acute vulnerability is the quiet erosion of the small and medium manufacturers that actually underpin readiness, sustainment, and materiel availability. Losing nearly half of the SMM base over a decade is not an abstract economic trend—it is a direct, measurable threat to product support, MRO capacity, and weapon system availability. A truly effective DMSMS strategy must be bottom-up, not top-down. If we don’t stabilize and strengthen the most fragile tiers of the supply chain, no amount of prime-level oversight or contract restructuring will solve O/I/D-level sustainment challenges. Your point on audited CMMC Level 2 flow-down is also critical. Without a realistic assessment of cost, timing, and survivability impacts on SMMs, we risk accelerating Slow-Bid / No-Bid behavior and unintentionally hollowing out the very industrial capacity OEMs depend on. This is a systems problem, and it demands systems-level thinking—grounded in objective data, SMM realities, and sustainment outcomes, not just prime contract optics. Appreciate you putting this front and center.
Frank Savel III
3mo
A major defect in USA MBA / economic (CATO) understanding at the damage Military Risk Analysis is Small businesses that make stuff is a Core must be of all Independent free countries. The bad tactic claiming as a Society matures it moves in to pure trade / finance and leaves Agra, Mfg, making stuff behind is a kiss of death. Small businesses drive innovation, Jobs, Education, and countries wealth and power. A small group of Oligarchs drive to zero change as most profitable by creating monopolies. A country that is vertically integrated wins self sufficient from mining on up. RE & EV are perfect examples of must be changes
Rajesh K
3mo
Strategic resilience fails bottom-up; sustainment capacity, not prime scale, is the real readiness constraint.
I totally agree Paul. They need to look to the small business industrial base and reduce dependencies on OEM’s. #better #cheaper #faster
Chris Harley
3mo
Maybe SLIGHTLY fewer military acronyms would help get your message across…
Greg Reid
3mo
Paul - thank you for including definitions for the acronyms.
Peter Emerson
3mo
Nice picture of BIW. Bath Built Best Built!
Nathan Howe
3mo
Well said!
Self Employed•3K followers
3moIt also doesn’t mention that we allowed all 2nd, third and fourth tiers product suppliers to be sold out to the foreign owned companies. No one in the government raised concerns about IP transfers!