Question Period Note: Procurement of Sleeping Bags for the Canadian Armed Forces

On September 13, 2024, an article by CBC News reported the General Purpose Sleeping Bag System was unsuitable and did not provide sufficient warmth while on winter exercises.

• The Government of Canada is committed to providing members of the Canadian Armed Forces with equipment they need for operations and training, including sleeping bags suitable for the environmental conditions
  • This includes offering members a general purpose sleeping bag and an extreme cold sleeping bag, depending on what they need
  • Public Services and Procurement Canada posted a solicitation to procure sleeping bags for extreme cold in July 2024, with an expectation to have delivery of one thousand sleeping bags start before the end of 2025
  • Until these new sleeping bags are delivered, soldiers will continue to use the old sleeping bags, which are suitable for most conditions

On September 26, 2019 Public Services and Procurement Canada awarded a contract on behalf of the Department of National Defence to Logistik Unicorp Inc. for $2.9 million for the General Purpose Sleeping Bag System. The General Purpose Sleeping Bag System was intended for general use in environmental conditions soldiers encounter most of the time, with less weight and less bulk to reduce burden on soldiers. Extreme cold weather sleeping bags are being acquired under a separate solicitation.

The contract was put in place with options to order additional quantities valid for 5 years. All option years have now been exercised and the current contract value is $34.8 million. Approximately 55,000 General Purpose Sleeping Bag System were manufactured and delivered or are on order to be delivered.

The solicitation for Extreme Cold Sleeping Bags was posted in July 2024. Delivery of 1,000 bags with options for between 2000 to 9000 are expected to commence before the end of 2025. Field testing of sample sleeping bags will be conducted this winter, and deliveries are expected before winter 2026.

To provide better functionality for soldiers, Department of National Defence is modernizing their sleeping bag system with two complementary systems: one general purpose for most weather conditions, and one for extreme cold. Having two systems will improve soldiers’ ability to work effectively in a variety of different environments. Department of National Defence has indicated that it will communicate internally to ensure that personnel understand which systems should be used for which conditions, and are aware of the strategy to modernize the Canadian Armed Forces sleeping gear.

• On September 26, 2019, Public Services and Procurement Canada awarded a contract to Logistik Unicorp Inc. on behalf of the Department of National Defence for the General Purpose Sleeping Bag System. After exercising options, the contract is currently valued at $34.8 million and will deliver 55,000 systems
  • As of October 25, 2024, over 50,000 systems have been delivered