According to a release late last month, the Swiss Procurement Agency (Bundesamt für Rüstung armasuisse) has awarded contracts to six companies to provide new cold and wet weather combat clothing for around 44 million Suisse francs.
The new producers of kit for the Army combat clothing and equipment (Kampfbekleidung und Ausrüstung der Armee or MBAS) program include two Swiss, one Austrian, one German, one Polish and one Indian company. They are: Workfashion.com AG and Cross Fashion Ltd. from Switzerland, Goldeck Textil GmbH from Austria, Ziegler Textil AG from Germany, Unifeq Sp. Z.o.o. from Poland and Qualiance Pvt. Ltd. from India.
All six companies were also checked in advance for the social sustainability of production, such as working conditions and safety standards.
The program began in 2018 with plans to begin fielding later this year. The MBAS project includes the procurement of new combat clothing and carrying systems in a new camouflage pattern as well as a hydration system and ballistic body protection in two versions.
Contracts for headgear have already been awarded to French and a Polish company. The combat uniform portion of the program is still in source selection. A total of 348 million Suisse francs have been budgeted for MBAS.
