Army Advanced Manufacturing (AdvM) Commercial Solutions Opening W9124P26SC001: Complete Guide for Startups

Executive Summary

The Army Advanced Manufacturing (AdvM) Commercial Solutions Opening asks for innovative commercial solutions that establish and advance manufacturing capability across the Army's Organic Industrial Base (OIB) and out to the tactical edge.

The CSO was first issued on July 15, 2026. Amendment 1 was posted on SAM.gov on August 27, 2026. It is an umbrella CSO with no deadline, and the document says it "will remain open and accept submissions continuously" until the Army cancels it.

Companies can respond in two ways:

• General submission. Submit at any time against one of 18 Active Capability Gap (ACG) areas of interest.
• Call for Solutions. Respond to a specific Call, which addresses a defined need and has its own short deadline.

Phase 1 is a one-page quad chart and a five-page white paper sent by email. Awards are firm-fixed-price only.

For a startup with a commercial manufacturing, automation, inspection or industrial software product, this is one of the broadest Army entry points open right now. The main thing to understand: a general submission gets you on file, and a Call usually means the Army has already identified a specific need.

Army AdvM CSO at a Glance

• Solicitation number: W9124P26SC001 (W9124P-26-S-C001), Amendment 1
• Issuing office: Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal (ACC-RSA), Redstone Services and Information Technology Solutions Branch
• Customer: Headquarters U.S. Army Materiel Command (HQ AMC)
• Status: Open in perpetuity until canceled. Individual Calls for Solutions carry their own deadlines.
• Authorities:
  • The CSO document cites Section 803 of the FY2022 NDAA.
  • The SAM.gov notice also lists 10 U.S.C. § 3458 with DFARS RFO 212.70, 10 U.S.C. § 4022 prototype OTs, RFO 6.101(b)(3), and the Employee Stock Ownership Pilot Program.
• Areas of interest: 18 Active Capability Gap areas, and the CSO "is open to any novel advanced manufacturing solution"
• Phase 1 submission: One-page quad chart plus white paper of up to five pages, emailed as two separate PDFs
• Award type: Firm-fixed-price only, per DFARS RFO 212.7002(b)
• Instruments: RFO Part 12 purchase orders and BPAs, Part 12 and 15 contracts, Part 16 IDIQs and BOAs, or prototype OTs under 10 U.S.C. § 4022
• Eligibility: Industry, academia and nontraditional partners. Small businesses are generally nontraditional defense contractors under 10 U.S.C. § 3014. Active SAM.gov registration is required for award.
• Submission and questions: usarmy.redstone.acc.mbx.acc-rsa-advm-cso@army.mil (primary POC on SAM.gov: Stephanie Dillon)

The 18 Active Capability Gap Areas

The CSO says it is open to any novel advanced manufacturing solution. It names these 18 areas of particular interest:

1. Robotics and Automation. Automating manual manufacturing and depot maintenance processes, such as robotic welding, automated material handling and cobots for assembly.
2. Additive Manufacturing. On-demand polymer, metal or composite parts, including large-format and multi-material printing and quality assurance and certification for critical components.
3. Advanced Materials. High-strength alloys, composites, self-healing materials and other materials that improve performance, weight or corrosion resistance.
4. Digital Twin and Digital Thread. Virtual models of assets and processes for predictive maintenance, process optimization and lifecycle management.
5. Smart and Connected Factories (IIoT). Sensors, analytics and IIoT to monitor equipment health, track production and optimize the factory floor.
6. Advanced Non-destructive Testing and Inspection. Advanced ultrasonics, thermography, automated computer-aided inspection and similar methods.
7. Workforce Development and Manufacturing Skills. Training material, concepts or methods for a digital manufacturing workforce.
8. Supply Chain Risk Management. Tools to identify and address strategic manufacturing value chain vulnerabilities in the defense industrial base.
9. Cybersecurity. Tools to build DoW Risk Management Framework requirements into processes, product design and documentation.
10. Enterprise Data Integration. A centralized AdvM data repository for qualified part data, technical data packages and IP, with data exchange with the Defense Logistics Agency.
11. AdvM at the Tactical Edge. The right mix of AdvM capability in expeditionary and tactical environments, including point-of-need solutions.
12. Army AdvM Consortium. Managing an alliance of government, industry, nonprofits and academia to qualify AdvM vendors, processes and parts.
13. OIB and AdvM Innovation Centers. Machines, tooling, technology and talent for a network of innovation hubs.
14. Metrology. Advanced measurement systems, such as optical or blue light scanning, to verify machines and parts meet tolerances.
15. Qualification and Certification. Technologies and methods to qualify and certify manufacturing processes and parts.
16. Advanced Electronics Manufacturing. Flexible hybrid electronics and additively manufactured electronics.
17. Advanced Coatings and Surface Engineering. Coatings and surface modifications for durability, corrosion resistance, thermal management and signature management.
18. Predictive Maintenance Analytics. AI and machine learning models that predict component failures, optimize maintenance schedules and forecast sustainment needs.

The CSO's general invitation to "any novel advanced manufacturing solution" acts as a catch-all beyond these named areas.

Not sure which area your technology fits, or whether it fits at all? We can tell you on a short call.

What Recent Calls for Solutions Looked Like

The CSO says the Army "may issue specific 'Calls for Solutions' as amendments" to address focused gaps. In practice, recent Calls were posted as separate SAM.gov notices titled "AdvM Call for Solutions" and linked from the CSO page:

• Modern Radar Systems Organic Capability Development (PANRSA-26-P-0000-039852): closed August 14, 2026.
• Expeditionary Additive Manufacturing (EAM) Systems (PANRSA-26-P-0000040885): posted August 24, due August 31 at noon CT. Seven days to respond.
• Modernized Paint Line at Tobyhanna Army Depot (PANRSA-26-P-0000-040601): posted August 27, due September 16 at noon CT after amendment. The Army asked for a complete system: hardware, automated parts handling and open-architecture SCADA software for paint application, curing and shop operations.
• Automated Parts Handling for Plating at Tobyhanna Army Depot (PANRSA-26-P-0000-040599): posted August 27, due September 16 at noon CT after amendment.

No AdvM Call was active on SAM.gov as of October 1, 2026.

Two lessons stand out. The windows are short: seven days at the low end, about three weeks with extensions. And the Calls can ask for an integrated, working system. A startup that owns one piece of that system may be better positioned as a supplier or teammate to an integrator.

The SAM notice also says RFIs posted under the CSO are for market research only, and the government has no obligation to follow one with a Call.

How the Three-Phase Process Works

Phase 1: White paper and quad chart. You submit both as two separate PDFs by email to usarmy.redstone.acc.mbx.acc-rsa-advm-cso@army.mil. Use the subject line "CSO Submission – Advanced Manufacturing – [Your Company Name]". Content past the page limits will not be read.

The quad chart is one page and follows Attachment 1. Its four quadrants are:

• Objective and Description: objective, description of effort and commerciality.
• Graphic or Illustration.
• Benefits and Challenges: benefits, challenges and current maturity (TRL/MRL).
• Execution Plan: milestones, deliverables, proposed funding, period of performance and contact information.

The white paper follows Attachment 2: up to five pages, 8.5 x 11 inches, one-inch margins, single-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman. It has eight sections:

1. Project title, offeror, and area of interest or Call number
2. Executive summary
3. Description of effort, including why it is commercial in nature
4. Benefits to the Army
5. Technical challenges, with risks and mitigation
6. Rough order of magnitude cost and schedule
7. Corporate and personnel qualifications
8. Data rights

Phase 2: Oral presentation or demonstration. This happens at the government's discretion. Offerors with meritorious white papers may be invited to present or demonstrate to a panel of government subject matter experts. The government may skip Phase 2 and go directly to Phase 3.

Phase 3: Request for Solution Proposal. Offerors who are evaluated successfully may be invited to submit a full written proposal with technical, price and contractual portions. An award may follow a favorable evaluation.

The government does not pay for preparing or submitting documents or presentations in any phase.

How Submissions Are Evaluated

The government first checks compliance with the format rules in Section 4.1 and Attachments 1 and 2. A submission that fails the check may be excluded before technical review.

Submissions are evaluated on their own merit, not against each other. The factors, in descending order of importance, are:

1. Technical merit and relevance: applicability to the area of interest or Call, technical feasibility, and potential to enhance Army readiness and manufacturing capability.
2. Innovation and uniqueness: how new, underused or uniquely applied the solution is.
3. Company viability: relevant corporate experience in advanced manufacturing, industrial operations or commercializing similar technology, plus personnel qualifications and a sound business model.
4. Price and affordability.

All non-price factors combined are significantly more important than price.

After Phase 1, every submission gets one of three outcomes:

• Selected for Further Consideration: invited to the next phase.
• Retained for Future Consideration: the submission meets the criteria, and "will be retained in a repository for future consideration into the next phase once a Government need, manpower, and funding is available."
• Not Selected for Further Consideration.

The middle outcome matters most for general submissions. A strong white paper against an area of interest can sit in the repository until a depot need and funding line up.

Funding: What You Can and Cannot Expect

The CSO publishes no award ceiling or funding pool. It states, "Any award is subject to the availability of funds." The government may award some, all or none of the proposals. FY2027 began October 1 under a continuing resolution through December 11, 2026, which can slow new obligations.

The quad chart asks you to state proposed funding and a period of performance. The white paper asks for a rough order of magnitude cost and schedule. A scope the Army can fund and execute quickly is easier to move than a large multi-year program.

Depot modernization CSOs do produce real awards. In March 2026, Red River Army Depot awarded Hadrian $39.2 million, with up to $80 million in cumulative value, to establish advanced automation manufacturing at the depot. That award came through Red River's own OIB modernization CSO, not the AdvM CSO. It is not a ceiling or a typical award size, but it shows how quickly a depot can move once a need and funding align.

Data Rights

The government says it wants only the data rights it needs. Identify any data rights restrictions clearly in the proposal, and use section 8 of the white paper for a preliminary list. Negotiations follow DFARS data and software rights clauses.

How to Prepare Before the Next Call

1. Pick one problem. Choose one area of interest and one depot or field problem your technology solves. Describe it in measurable terms: throughput, turnaround time, labor hours, hazardous exposure, scrap, inspection backlog or downtime.
2. Build the package to the templates. Follow Attachments 1 and 2 exactly. The compliance check comes before technical review.
3. Submit against the general area now. Even a "Retained for Future Consideration" result puts your solution in the repository the Army draws on when a need is funded.
4. Make it reusable. Write the package so it can be tailored to a Call within 48 hours. Include the ROM, the period of performance and an implementation plan covering installation, training, cybersecurity and sustainment at a government facility.
5. Watch for Calls. Save a SAM.gov search for "AdvM Call for Solutions" and follow W9124P26SC001.
6. Decide your role early. If a likely Call needs a full system, line up the integrator or partner now.
7. Look at the depot CSOs too. See our guides to the Sierra Army Depot CSO and the Anniston Army Depot CSO.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is solicitation W9124P26SC001? The Army Advanced Manufacturing Commercial Solutions Opening, issued by ACC-Redstone for Headquarters Army Materiel Command, to acquire innovative commercial manufacturing solutions for the Organic Industrial Base and the tactical edge.

What is the deadline? The CSO itself has none. It is open in perpetuity until canceled. Each Call for Solutions has its own deadline, and recent Calls closed between seven days and about three weeks after posting.

Is there an open Call right now? No AdvM Call for Solutions was active on SAM.gov as of October 1, 2026.

What do I submit? A one-page quad chart and a white paper of up to five pages in 12-point Times New Roman, as two separate PDFs, emailed to usarmy.redstone.acc.mbx.acc-rsa-advm-cso@army.mil with the subject line "CSO Submission – Advanced Manufacturing – [Your Company Name]."

How much funding is available? No amount is published. Any award is subject to the availability of funds, and only firm-fixed-price arrangements can be awarded.

Can a startup with no government contracts apply? Yes. The CSO invites industry, academia and other nontraditional partners, and small businesses are generally nontraditional defense contractors. You need an active SAM.gov registration to receive an award.

What happens if my white paper is good but there is no funding? It can be marked "Retained for Future Consideration" and held in a repository until a government need, manpower and funding are available.

Does the government pay proposal costs? No. The government does not pay for preparation or submission in any phase.

Sources

• SAM.gov, Army Advanced Manufacturing (AdvM) CSO, W9124P26SC001, updated August 27, 2026, verified October 1, 2026: https://sam.gov/opp/7f9b0cd559494155a50c7e5af0f11bbd/view
• ACC-RSA, "Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) Solicitation Number W9124P-26-S-C001 Amendment 1 for Advanced Manufacturing" (attachment on SAM.gov)
• SAM.gov, AdvM Call for Solutions, Expeditionary Additive Manufacturing Systems: https://sam.gov/opp/69a143cc118243b48a82fb5cfea2a3b8/view
• SAM.gov, AdvM Call for Solutions, Modernized Paint Line in SOD: https://sam.gov/opp/ab97e088933e40a5bf2289daed14d4b4/view
• SAM.gov, AdvM Call for Solutions, Automated Parts Handling for Plating in SOD: https://sam.gov/opp/64f3745e095c4cedb8d066f6da1bba33/view
• U.S. Army, "Army accelerates advanced manufacturing with contracting award at Red River," March 18, 2026: https://www.army.mil/article/291165

Get Ready Before the Next Call

AdvM Calls can close in seven days. BW&CO helps deep tech and dual-use founders pick the right area of interest, build a quad chart and white paper that follow the CSO templates, and tailor the package fast when a Call drops. We have helped clients secure more than $350 million in non-dilutive funding.

Featured image: U.S. Army photo by Mark Cleghorn. The appearance of U.S. Department of War visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement.