NextGen IAC MAC: Registration for the Oct. 30 Industry Day Closes Oct. 26
The Department of War (DoW) will hold an industry day on Oct. 30, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern, at the Mark Center in Alexandria, Virginia, to preview NextGen IAC MAC. That is the successor to the Information Analysis Center Multiple Award Contract (IAC MAC), a $48 billion ceiling indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) vehicle for research and development (R&D) services, administered by the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). Registration closes Oct. 26 with no late registrations, and every attendee needs an active Visit Access Request. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Critical Technologies hosts, and the 774th Enterprise Sourcing Squadron presents.
The revenue stake runs two ways. For firms without a seat, this is new-business capture: the current vehicle’s ordering period ends Sept. 29, 2027, and the industry day is the only scheduled step where DoW has said it will take industry feedback. For current holders, it is retention risk. DoW has not said whether current seats carry over, so a holder should plan to compete again. The pool design will set which pool it competes in. A DoW flyer puts the new ceiling above $80 billion. That figure is a maximum, not a forecast of orders.
| Field | Answer |
|---|---|
| Signal | DoW industry day for NextGen IAC MAC, announced Oct. 14, 2026, under sources-sought notice FA807527R0001 |
| BD implication | A successor to a DoD R&D services vehicle is in market research, with pool design and technical priorities still open |
| Customer | Every DoD component that places R&D task orders through the vehicle |
| Buyer | DoW Office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Critical Technologies (host); 774th Enterprise Sourcing Squadron (presenter); DTIC administers the current vehicle |
| Funding | Reported ceiling above $80 billion, not funded; the current $48 billion ceiling is also not obligated spend |
| Vehicle / path | NextGen IAC MAC multiple-award contract; predecessor IAC MAC, ordering period ends Sept. 29, 2027 |
| Incumbents | More than 40 prime contract positions on the current vehicle; HII, Booz Allen Hamilton, KBR, ManTech TSG-2 JV, and CACI lead by obligations |
| Access strategy | Register, request visit access, then prime in the unrestricted pool, team with a holder, or sub |
| Timing | Registration closes Oct. 26; industry day Oct. 30; incumbent ordering ends Sept. 29, 2027 |
| Confidence | Medium-High on the incumbent vehicle’s terms and obligations; Medium on the event details; Low on the new vehicle’s structure |
| Pursuit posture | SHAPE (non-holders and small businesses); DEFEND (holders with orders); TEAM (firms without a seat that would sub to a holder) |
| Upgrade triggers | A draft or final solicitation with pools, evaluation factors, and a due date |
| Downgrade triggers | No follow-up posting after Oct. 30, or DoW extending the current vehicle in place of a successor |
- The event is pre-solicitation market engagement. It is not a request for proposals and not a commitment to award.
- DoW says it will brief the requirement, technical priorities, and a tentative acquisition strategy, and take feedback.
- DoW has published no solicitation date, pool structure, or evaluation factors for the successor.
A Bigger Ceiling Is Not a Bigger Market: About $17 Billion Obligated on the Original Contracts
The common read is that an $80 billion vehicle is an $80 billion market. The obligation history says otherwise. The 18 original IAC MAC contracts, awarded in 2018, show about $17.0 billion in task order obligations. That is at least 35% of the $48 billion ceiling after about eight years. The ten small-business contract numbers added in 2019 contribute roughly $0.25 billion, so the share is a little over 35%. Utilization at that level suggests the ceiling sits well above expected orders. The strongest case for the larger ceiling is that DoW expects to route more critical-technology orders through one vehicle. For any firm without a seat, the vehicle remains the route to DoD R&D orders.
Money moves only when a DoD customer places a funded task order. The new vehicle’s structure tells you more about your odds than its size.
The incumbent’s terms show how work flows:
| Term | Current IAC MAC |
|---|---|
| Ceiling | $48 billion, ceiling only |
| Ordering period | Ends Sept. 29, 2027 |
| Order size | No vehicle-wide minimum or maximum; Pool 1 takes orders over $15 million and Pool 2 takes orders under $15 million |
| Order performance | Up to 60 months |
| Speed | 5.5 months average from solicitation to award on task orders in fiscal 2024 |
| Scope | 22 technical focus areas, including cybersecurity, directed energy, autonomous systems, and C4ISR |
The new vehicle is organized differently on paper. Event materials list six critical technology areas: applied AI, biomanufacturing, contested logistics, scaled directed energy, scaled hypersonics, and quantum and battlefield information dominance. DoW has not said whether those replace the 22 focus areas or sit above them. A firm strong in a legacy area that fits none of the six faces a scope question.
Pool Design Decides Which Seat You Compete For, and Whether the Small-Business Lane Has Work
Order size routes work between pools, and the small-business lane has drawn about 1.4% of obligations on the original and 2019 contracts. The current vehicle has three pools. Pool 1 is full and open, for task orders over $15 million. Pool 2 is for small businesses, for orders under $15 million. Pool 3 is a CBRN lab pool for nonprofit laboratories. In spring 2025, DoD (now DoW) asked industry whether the follow-on should use two pools or a single pool, and how to make Pool 3 more competitive. The notice left Pool 3’s future open beyond that question.
The single-pool options set aside work below a dollar threshold for small businesses, with either the same qualifications for everyone or different qualifications for small firms. DoW has published no decision.
The vehicle sets no floor or ceiling on any single order, yet it still routes each order by size. That routing is the lever. A single pool with a threshold could keep the small-business lane or move the line. The ten small-business contract numbers have held ordering rights since Mar. 1, 2019, and total about $0.25 billion, which suggests the under-$15 million lane has drawn little work. A small business should ask which design DoW intends, and whether the successor’s threshold moves enough work into the set-aside lane to justify a seat.
- Under a two-pool design, a small business competes for a seat in a small-business-only pool and would likely keep a dedicated lane, though whether the $15 million order-value line carries over remains open.
- Under a single pool with a threshold, a small business competes for a seat against firms of any size, then draws set-aside orders below the line.
- Under a single pool with different small-business qualifications, the qualification bar becomes the first gate.
Competitive Landscape: Five Firms Took 79% of Obligations on the Original Contracts
The original holders are not evenly positioned. Five firms account for about $13.4 billion of the $17.0 billion, or 79%. HII Mission Technologies leads at $3.49 billion, followed by Booz Allen Hamilton at $3.26 billion, KBR Wyle at $3.25 billion, ManTech TSG-2 Joint Venture at $2.11 billion, and CACI at $1.34 billion.
SAIC holds about $748 million, Battelle about $684 million across two contracts, Amentum about $657 million, Georgia Tech Applied Research Corporation about $650 million, and Leidos about $633 million.
The later seats split in two. The 2019 small-business seats show roughly $0 to $53 million each, so age does not explain their thin totals. The seats added in 2025 each show one recorded award at $0. That may reflect their short time on the vehicle, but the 2019 seats show that time alone has not produced orders for later entrants.
Three groups compete for the next vehicle:
- Established holders with deep order histories, who know the customers and own the order flow.
- Newer holders with thin totals, who must decide whether a re-proposal is worth the cost.
- Firms with no seat, including mid-market systems integrators, other university-affiliated research centers, and commercial-first firms new to the vehicle.
What to Bring to the Mark Center on Oct. 30
Work in this order:
- Start the Visit Access Request for every attendee now, since an active request is required.
- Register at the event site before Oct. 26; late registrations will not be accepted.
- Map your past performance to the six technology areas and to the 22 current focus areas.
- Prepare questions on pool count, the small-business order threshold, and whether current seats carry over.
- Decide your posture before the event: prime, team with a holder, or sub.
- Current holders with orders: list the focus areas your orders sit in and decide which pool design protects them.
- Current holders with few or no orders: decide whether a 2027 re-proposal is worth the cost.
- Mid-market systems integrators without a seat: name the holder you would team with, or decide to prime in the unrestricted pool.
- Small businesses: map your task order wins against the $15 million line and ask whether it survives and what work it carries.
- University-affiliated and commercial-first performers: match your work to one of the six technology areas and name the prime you would sub to.
What Would Change the Read for Bidders
I would treat NextGen IAC MAC as a shaping opportunity for firms outside the current holders and a defense for those with orders. DoW has named the host, the presenting office, the vehicle, a notice number, and a dated engagement window. It has not published pools, set-aside rules, evaluation factors, or a schedule. That is enough to justify registering and preparing questions, and too little to justify a capture budget.
The timing argues for early teaming. The current ordering period ends Sept. 29, 2027, and DoW has set no solicitation date.
Three events would move this to active pursuit: a draft or final solicitation with pools and evaluation factors, a stated pool structure with a small-business threshold, or confirmation that current seats carry over. The read weakens if the industry day passes with no follow-up posting, or if DoW extends the current vehicle instead of awarding a successor.
FAQ
What is NextGen IAC MAC?
It is the planned successor to the IAC MAC, DoD’s multiple-award contract for R&D and R&D-related analytical services. DoW announced an industry day for it on Oct. 14, 2026, and a DoW flyer puts its ceiling above $80 billion.
When is the industry day and how do I register?
The industry day is Oct. 30, 2026, at the Mark Center, 4800 Mark Center Drive, Alexandria, Virginia. Registration closes Oct. 26 through the event website, and an active Visit Access Request is required.
Is the $80 billion ceiling real money?
It is a maximum cumulative ordering value, not funding. The 18 original contracts of the current $48 billion vehicle show about $17.0 billion in obligations, so the ceiling is not a guide to demand.
Who holds the current IAC MAC?
The vehicle carries more than 40 prime contract positions. By obligations on the original contracts, HII, Booz Allen Hamilton, KBR, ManTech TSG-2 Joint Venture, and CACI lead.
Will the small-business pool survive?
DoW has not said. It asked in spring 2025 whether to keep two pools (one small-business, one unrestricted) or move to a single pool with small-business set-asides below a dollar threshold.
What happens to current task orders when the ordering period ends?
The ordering period ends Sept. 29, 2027, after which no new orders can be placed unless DoW extends it. The vehicle’s period of performance runs to Mar. 31, 2028, and task orders can run up to 60 months. How long open orders can run past that date is a question for the industry day.
Is the new vehicle a recompete of the current one?
DoW calls it the successor but has not said whether current holders carry over without competing, so plan as though you must compete.
