Vandenberg Space Force Base has adopted sealed bidding in the recent contract solicitation for its Simplified Acquisition of Base Engineering Requirements, or SABER, program with the bids’ opening conducted live and streamed online.
The California base’s approach on the SABER indefinite-delivery/indefinite quantity contract, a first in the U.S. Space Force, aims to promote visibility and transparency, Alyson Kolding, 30th Contracting Squadron contracting officer, said in a base statement Monday.
“We also learned how to incorporate electronic processes into a regulation which has not been updated to consider the new digital landscape.,” noted Jeffrey Grelck, 30th Contracting Squadron contracting officer.
The focus of SABER, one of Vandenberg’s two major construction programs that require expeditious efforts, is on simpler building projects, Kolding added.
The SABER IDIQ contract awards, worth about $60 million, are for construction projects around Vandenberg over the next five years and supports the base’s aspiration to become a “Spaceport of the Future.”
In August 2023, the U.S. Air Force previewed its SABER contract solicitation approach in a five-year, $200 million contract designed to address engineering requirements at Eglin Air Force Base and associated facilities in Florida.