SASP (special ammunition supply point)

SASP stands for special ammunition supply point. In NATO usage, it is a designated point for the supply or issue of special ammunition. The abbreviation and its expansion appear in NATO's Glossary of NATO Acronyms and Abbreviations.

The term belongs to NATO military logistics vocabulary. It sits alongside related labels for ammunition supply points, and the NATO glossary gives its French equivalent as poste d'approvisionnement en munitions spéciales. Canadian suppliers working on defence ammunition files should recognize it as allied terminology tied to how ammunition is held and issued.

What the NATO glossary says about SASP

The NATO glossary lists SASP as an abbreviation and expands it as "special ammunition supply point." The entry names the NATO Ammunition Safety Group (NASG) as the responsible NATO body. That link to the ammunition safety community places the term in the part of NATO work concerned with the safe handling and storage of ammunition.

The glossary establishes the term, its expansion, its French equivalent and the NASG reference. It does not set out which ammunition types count as "special," or what facility or security requirements apply to such a point. Those details sit outside the glossary entry.

NATO's official database for non-classified military terminology is NATOTerm. It is the reference point for the approved wording of NATO terms.

SASP, ASP and NASP: related supply point terms

Three similar abbreviations are easy to confuse.

• SASP: special ammunition supply point.
• ASP: ammunition supply point.
• NASP: NATO ammunition supply point, which the NATO glossary lists as its own entry.

The "special" in SASP is what separates it from the general ammunition supply point. Bid teams reading allied or NATO-linked documents should keep the three apart and confirm which one a document uses before drafting a response.

How Canada manages and buys ammunition

The Department of National Defence (DND) manages ammunition and explosives. Its audit of ammunition and explosives management covers activities that include procurement, contracting and vendor selection.

The Treasury Board's Directive on the Management of Procurement treats ammunition as a form of logistics support. It also provides exceptional authority for goods or services contracts for ammunition under the Munitions Supply Program, up to $200 million.

Federal tender notices, awards, contract history, standing offers and supply arrangements are published through CanadaBuys procurement and contracting data. Suppliers can use these datasets to follow how DND buys ammunition and related support.

What SASP means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

SASP is a term to recognize, not a standalone requirement. Any obligations connected to a special ammunition supply point would come from the specific solicitation, statement of work, security requirements, ammunition-safety requirements or contract clauses. Read those documents closely and confirm how a tender uses the term.

If a document refers to a SASP, an ASP or a NASP, check which one applies. Where the wording is unclear, raise it with the contracting authority through the questions process set out in the tender notice on CanadaBuys. Bid teams should also track DND ammunition awards and standing offers in the CanadaBuys data to see how this work is bought.