Many defense contractors provide multiple contracts to the military for a variety of products, from computers to telecommunication and equipment contracts. Often, defense contractors subcontract specific parts or components to other approved manufacturers.
In addition, the military or Department of Defense may also contract directly with manufacturers for specific components, including military cable assemblies for military robotics, drones, networking and communications, satellites, weapons systems, radar, power distribution and delivery and even for flight instrumentation and controls.
For contractors, finding a specialized company to provide military cable assemblies on budget, on time and to the demanding standards set forth in these contracts can be a challenge. Many companies that can offer the best prices are not ITAR registered and are not capable of manufacturing the cables and harnesses to the required MIL-STD 2000 specifications.
Engineering Services
Using a company that offers a full range of services that are up to the task of working from the design process through to production will be essential. This allows the contractor to use the engineering services and design team with experience and specialization in military cable assemblies, freeing up their team to work on the other aspects of the component or device design.
Prototype Development
Once the design has been approved, the next step will be to create a prototype of the cable and harness to allow for testing before full volume production. The experience of the company will be critical in the production of the prototype in the timeframe and the budget.
Transition to Production
The final consideration for a defense contractor will be to determine if the company providing the cable assemblies is able to move from the prototype to production. Keep in mind some of these cables and harnesses may be very specialized with a low volume or production while others, particularly for telecommunication needs, may be required in high volume. When a company is able to accommodate these different production levels, it will be a good match for the project.
