美国陆军正在寻找新的制造商来生产155毫米榴弹炮炮管，因为五角大楼担心政府唯一的炮管制造工厂无法跟上日益增长的火炮需求。
The U.S. Army is looking for new manufacturers to build barrels for 155mm howitzers amid concerns at the Pentagon that the government’s only plant for manufacturing them can’t keep up with the increased demand for artillery.
根据征求信息公告，陆军希望承包商能在三年内实现每月制造多达10根炮管的产能。截止日期为11月23日。
The Army wants contractors that can manufacture up to 10 barrels per month within three years, according to the Sources Sought notice. The deadline is Nov. 23.
公告称，要求公司提供其制造炮管的能力详情——或其分包商的产能详情，包括是否能在长达30英尺、重达7500磅的钢管上添加“铬镀层”。它们还应提供可镀层钢管的最大长度和重量。
Companies were asked to provide details of their ability — or their subcontractor’s capacity — to make barrels, including whether they could add “chrome bore coatings on a steel tube up to 30 [feet] long and up to 7,500 pounds in weight,” the notice said. They should also provide the maximum length and weight of tube that they could coat.
此外还希望了解公司的镗削、铣削和拉膛能力详情，以及原材料详情，如“钢坯生产、锻造、导向镗孔和热处理”。公告要求承包商估算其在18个月内制造155毫米炮管的产能，以及在36个月内达到每月最多10根炮管的产能。陆军表示，公司还应为“40根炮管的初始生产量”（按口径细分，或提供组合/灵活组合的定价）提供成本估算。
Also desired are details on a company’s boring, milling and rifling capabilities, as well as details on raw materials, such as “steel preform production, forging, guide bore, and heat treatment.”The notice asks contractors to estimate their capacity to manufacture 155mm barrels within 18 months, and up to 10 barrels per month within 36 months. Companies should also offer a cost estimate for an “initial production quantity of 40 cannon tubes (broken down by caliber or indicating pricing for a combined/flexible mix),” the Army said.
目前，陆军仅在纽约州老旧的沃特夫利特兵工厂制造榴弹炮和坦克用的大口径炮管。
Currently, the Army makes large-caliber barrels for howitzers and tanks only at the aging Watervliet Arsenal in New York.
美国和欧洲一直专注于扩大榴弹炮弹药产量，以满足乌克兰战争的需求并补充国内储备，但另一个问题是缺乏制造能力来更换磨损的火炮炮管。
While America and Europe have been focused on expanding production of howitzer ammunition to meet demand in the Ukraine war and replenish domestic stockpiles, another problem is a lack of manufacturing capacity to replace worn-out cannon barrels.
据《战区》报道，一份2024年五角大楼预算文件指出，乌克兰对M777榴弹炮的大量使用，产生了每月超过30根M776炮管的需求。该文件承认沃特夫利特兵工厂无法跟上需求，并请求紧急拨款转移，以启用第二家炮管制造商。
A 2024 Pentagon budget document stated that Ukraine’s heavy use of M777 howitzers created a demand for more than 30 M776 tubes per month, according to The War Zone. The document admitted that Watervliet could not keep up with demand, and asked for emergency funding to be transferred to enable a second manufacturer of barrels.
新通知未提及还需要多少家额外的炮管制造商。不过，陆军正在探讨是否用基于韩国广受欢迎的K9自行火炮研制的武器来替换M777。
The new notice doesn’t mention how many additional barrel manufacturers are needed. However, the Army is exploring whether to replace the M777 with a weapon based on Korea’s popular K9 howitzer.