Mustang second round
Off-road pickups are becoming more and more popular among military users, incl. thanks to their significant load capacity, susceptibility to modifications and ease of installation of various types of bodies. This was the case with the Ford Ranger proposed in the previous case by PGZ and WZM.
On July 18, a notice of a contract for the supply of heavy vehicles (codenamed "Mustang") was published on the website of the Armaments Inspectorate and in the Official Journal of the European Union. This is the second approach to the procurement program for the successor to the Honker and specialized versions of the UAZ-469B currently in service with the troops. If everything goes according to plan this time around, the new cars should hit users in 2019.
Recall that on July 23, 2015, the Armaments Inspectorate announced the order IU / 84 / X-96 / ZO / NZO / DOS / Z / 2015 for the supply of 882 (841 unarmored and 41 armored) new off-road vehicles, and in June 2016 sent invitations to submit proposals to seven potential contractors who meet the conditions for participation in the procedure, together with the attached Specifications for the essential terms of the contract (WiT 9/2016). Ultimately, on time (changed several times), i.e. until May 24 of this year. Only one proposal was submitted, submitted by the consortium Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa SA together with Wojskowe Zakłady Motoryzacyjne SA from Poznań, regarding Ford Ranger vehicles. Due to the proposed price of PLN 2,058 billion, which significantly exceeded the amount of PLN 232 million that “the contracting authority intended to spend to finance the contract”, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Procurement Law, the contract award procedure was cancelled. already June 19th.
To the question why only one proposal was submitted, several answers can be given, but this will require, among other things, a detailed analysis of the terms of reference sent to counterparties. It is in these records that one should look for the main reasons for the lack of response from so many bidders who previously subscribed to the Mustang program. A clue can be found in the questions asked by potential contractors to IU regarding the content of the Mustang contract notice. They concerned both the characteristics of the vehicles themselves, contained in the description of the contract, and the formal and legal requirements that the contractor had to comply with.
Whether more subjects will respond to the current announcement, we will theoretically find out (if the deadlines do not change) after September 4 this year, when the deadline for submitting initial proposals or applications for participation in the procedure expires.
Mustang of dreams and dreams
Several changes were made to the new announcement, although some controversial provisions remained. Obviously, there are new delivery dates - in 2019-2022. The number of vehicles also changed, albeit slightly, to 913, including 872 unarmored and 41 armored. However, it is worth noting, and this may be an additional incentive for contractors, that the announcement featured an option to supply a maximum of 2787 unarmored vehicles in 2019-2026. Presumably, this is due to plans to equip units of the Territorial Defense Forces that are currently being formed with this category of vehicles.
As regards the design requirements for the Honker successors included in the brief description of the order, they remain the same, i.e. the subject of deliveries are new cars (the year of delivery must match the year of manufacture), was characterized by:
❚ 4×4 drive system (permanent rear axle drive with attached front axle drive is allowed),
❚ the body in the unarmored version is adapted to carry eight people and the driver, and in the armored version - four people and the driver,
❚ Gross Weight (GVW) of an unarmored vehicle 3500 kg,
❚ carrying capacity in the unarmored version is not less than 1000 kg, and in the armored version is not less than 600 kg,
❚ compression ignition engine with a mass power rating of at least 35 kW/t (which for a vehicle with a gross weight of 3500 kg means a power plant with a power of at least 123 kW/167 hp, and for an armored one - more due to the larger VDM ),
❚ 200 mm (previously a minimum clearance of 220 mm was required);
❚ for fords with a depth of at least 500 mm (without preparation) and at least 650 mm (after preparation).
In addition, vehicles must be equipped with a winch with a pulling force of at least 100% FDA with a cable no less than 25 m long.
Armored vehicles must be armored (with bulletproof glass) at least level 1 according to STANAG 4569, Appendix A (bullet resistance) and Appendix B (detonation resistance). In this version, the wheels must be fitted with run flat inserts to allow the vehicle to continue moving after a loss of tire/tyre pressure.
All cars must be unified in terms of: power transmission systems, components, equipment, location of controls, instrument panels, etc.
The order will also include the provision of repair, service and maintenance services during the warranty period, carried out in authorized workshops in Poland.
As before, the customer has limited the number of contractors to five, and in case of a larger number, selects them based on the criteria specified in the announcement (points will be awarded for additional deliveries of all-terrain vehicles with a 4x4 drive with a gross weight of up to 3500 kg, in including the armored version).
On the other hand, the criteria for evaluating the most cost-effective proposal has changed from the previous announcement. This time the price is 60% by weight (previously 80%), warranty period 5% (previously 10%), ground clearance 10% (previously 5%), specific power 10% (previously 5%). A new criterion has emerged - a one-volume body, which must be a factory solution from the manufacturer of the base car - representing 15% of the weight and, at the same time, probably excluding contractors offering cars with a pickup body from the procedure. .
