DESTROY, DEFEAT, DISRUPT: Washington National Guard Soldiers with 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team take part in Table VI certification live fire at Yakima Training Center, Washington, April 21-23, 2023. The role of field artillery is to destroy, defeat or disrupt the enemy with integrated fires to enable maneuver commanders to dominate in unified land operations. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Adeline Witherspoon, 122nd Theater Public Affairs Support Element)
A product office supports efforts in Ukraine through nontraditional sources.
by Stacy Poto and Raymond Nulk
The United States has committed tremendous resources in security assistance to Ukraine “since the beginning of Russia’s unprovoked … invasion on February 24, 2022,” according to a U.S. Department of Defense Ukraine fact sheet dated July 7. A huge share of this national assistance is often provided through domestic stocks and industrial production, which can apply stress through the national industrial and technology supply chain. The Product Director for Special Ammunition and Weapon Systems (PdD SAWS) under the Project Manager for Maneuver Ammunition Systems (PM MAS), part of the Joint Program Executive Office for Armaments and Ammunition at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, sources critical munitions from nontraditional defense materiel supply chains and makes them available to support our National Military Strategy to help offset this production supply stress.
ORIGIN OF PdD SAWS
PdD SAWS was established in 2008 by the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology to procure all non-standard ammunition for the U.S. Army and in support of all government agencies. PdD SAWS’ original name was PdD Non-Standard Ammunition (PdD NSA). Non-standard ammunition is ammunition that is NOT type classified, materiel release, in U.S. inventory or U.S. safety tested, however the ammunition is comparable in performance to U.S. standard rounds and often less expensive. PdD SAWS office is responsible for overseeing the acquisition of over 400 non-standard munitions and mortar weapons including, but not limited to, small, medium and large caliber ammunition, rocket propelled grenades, hand grenades, aviation rockets, flares, anti-tank guided missiles and inert items. PdD NSA’s name transitioned to PdD SAWS as the office began procuring non-standard mortar weapons in addition to managing non-program of record 120 mm tank ammunition in support of foreign military sales (FMS) cases.
CURRENT AND EVOLVING MISSION
PdD SAWS emphasizes reliable and responsive support to ongoing FMS with our allies and international partners, while also ensuring that the U.S. industrial base remains strong in support of the National Military Strategy. With the advent of the invasion, PdD SAWS has been responsible for the increased procurement and delivery of thousands of non-standard indirect fire munitions along with non-standard 155 mm high explosive complete artillery ammunition.
PdD SAWS ensures reliable, safe and effective non-standard ammunition through a process of applied technical general specifications combined with visual and physical inspections of the ammunition. Broad technical parameters are installed within a base contract containing product-oriented specifications or details which are required as part of any delivery order. Within those general specifications are requirements and criteria for visual and physical review of workmanship, markings applied to the ammunition as well as packing and shipping materials, in addition to the requirements and criteria for ballistic testing of every lot of ammunition.
Leveraging the well understood and proven legacy design of foreign-produced ammunition made since the Cold War era lends itself to the ease of manufacture, with the use of multiple non-domestic suppliers working to achieve steady production rates. This procurement strategy results in lower-cost, higher-volume production of safe and reliable ammunition at a fraction of the cost of conventional ammunition. While oriented to support FMS cases and other national governmental needs, the use of this strategy ensures that the ammunition being provided to our allied nations does not impact readiness or affect domestic production for standard ammunition.
PdD SAWS—in support of Ukraine and using our skills for non-standard ammunition procurement—supports brokered arrangements and government transactions with partner nations. PdD SAWS provides assessments and evaluations of steeply discounted costs, as well as donations of non-standard ammunition, including non-standard equipment leveraging integral non-standard ammunition.
CONCLUSION
PdD SAWS provides a tremendous value to the taxpayer, while also strengthening the economic and diplomatic bonds with the partner nations who manufacture non-standard items. For our coalition partners, PdD SAWS provides a highly effective tactical and training alternative to standard ammunition weapon systems since our partners are already familiar with the legacy systems, thereby decreasing the time to fielding. The office provides an exceptional balance of safe, reliable and effective ammunition and small mortar weapons systems, while using the diversity of nontraditional foreign suppliers to provide a lower-cost production base and surge capacity as it is needed.
For more information, go to https://jpeoaa.army.mil/Project-Offices/PM-MAS/Organizations/PD-Special-Ammunition-and-Weapons-Systems.
STACY POTO is the deputy product director, Special Ammunition and Weapon Systems at JPEO A&A. She has an MBA in accounting from the University of Phoenix and an M.S. in contract management from the Naval Postgraduate School. She holds the DAWIA Advanced certification in program management and is a certified DOD contracting professional.
RAYMOND NULK is a defense support contractor with Blue Skies Inc., a subcontractor to SAIC. He retired from the U.S. Army as a colonel and he holds an M.S. in business analytics from Boston University, an M.S. in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College and a B.A. in natural sciences from Johns Hopkins University. He holds the DAWIA Advanced certification in program management, and in business and financial management, and the Practitioner certification in test and evaluation.
