The Federal and Defense Textile and Tactical Equipment (FEDTEX) Summit, hosted by the Office of US Senator Thom Tillis, Office of Senator Ted Budd and the North Carolina Military Business Center (NCMBC), connects the US Department of Defense (DoD) and federal agency clothing and individual equipment buyers with US textile manufacturers, textile supply chain suppliers, cut and sew contractors, research and development (R&D) facilities, testing labs and academic resources.

FEDTEX 26 objectives:

• Engage with existing contractors and attract new capable businesses into the federal and defense clothing, textiles, and tactical equipment marketplace.
• Engage existing textile supply chain suppliers and attract new capable businesses into the federal marketplace, and to connect these component suppliers with federal prime contractors.
• Inform the industrial and academic R&D ecosystem about desired future military technology requirements, and likewise inform DoD agencies about emerging and future textile innovations.
• Establish a productive and DIRECT dialogue between businesses, government, and academia around critical warfighter issues in the defense textile marketplace – including workforce, supply chain, inflation challenges, and barriers to entry.