Accessibility is not optional. It is a contract requirement.
Section 508 compliance, WCAG 2.2 Level AA conformance, VPAT documentation, and ADA facility assessments. Operated through Standard Accessibility, our dedicated compliance practice.
508 non-compliance is a disqualifier.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires that all electronic and information technology developed, procured, maintained, or used by the federal government must be accessible to people with disabilities. For government contractors, this is not aspirational guidance — it is a procurement requirement that can determine whether your bid is evaluated or returned as non-responsive.
When a federal agency issues a solicitation for IT products or services, the Section 508 requirements are embedded in the Statement of Work. The contracting officer will request a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) as part of your technical submission. If you cannot provide one, or if your VPAT reveals significant non-conformance, your proposal takes a substantive hit in the technical evaluation. In some agencies, it is a hard gate — no VPAT, no evaluation.
Beyond federal procurement, the Department of Justice has increasingly pursued enforcement actions under the ADA against organizations with inaccessible web properties. State governments are adopting similar requirements. The European Accessibility Act creates parallel obligations for defense manufacturers with international customers. The compliance surface area is expanding, and manufacturers who treat accessibility as a nice-to-have are accumulating legal and commercial risk.
WCAG 2.2 Level AA. The baseline.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines define the technical standard for digital accessibility. Level AA conformance is the benchmark for government compliance.
Perceivable
All content must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive. This includes text alternatives for images, captions for video, adaptable content structures that work with assistive technology, and sufficient color contrast ratios (minimum 4.5:1 for body text, 3:1 for large text). Defense product catalogs with specification tables, CAD drawings, and technical diagrams all require specific accessible alternatives.
Operable
All interface components must be operable through keyboard navigation alone. This means every interactive element — navigation menus, product filters, RFQ forms, document downloads — must be reachable and activatable without a mouse. Focus indicators must be visible. No content should cause seizures. Users must have enough time to read and interact with content.
Understandable
Content must be readable and predictable. The language of each page must be programmatically determinable. Navigation must be consistent across the site. Form inputs must have visible labels with clear error identification and suggestions for correction. For defense sites with complex technical terminology, this means glossaries, abbreviation expansion, and clear information architecture.
Robust
Content must be compatible with current and future assistive technologies. This means valid, well-structured HTML with proper ARIA attributes. Custom components must expose their name, role, and value to the accessibility API. Content must parse without errors. As browsers and screen readers evolve, your site must continue to function with them.
VPAT documentation that withstands scrutiny.
A Voluntary Product Accessibility Template is the standardized document format, maintained by the IT Industry Council, that vendors use to report the accessibility conformance of their products against WCAG 2.2, Section 508, and EN 301 549 criteria. It is the artifact that contracting officers review to assess your accessibility posture.
Most VPATs are filled out poorly — either overly optimistic (claiming “Supports” for criteria the product clearly fails) or imprecise (using “Partially Supports” for everything without explaining the specific non-conformances). Either approach undermines credibility. A contracting officer or Section 508 coordinator who reviews dozens of VPATs can immediately identify the ones that were completed by someone who actually tested the product versus the ones that were filled out by marketing.
We produce VPATs based on thorough manual and automated testing of your product. Each criterion is evaluated individually with specific notes on conformance level, the testing methodology used, and clear documentation of any exceptions or equivalent facilitation provided. The result is a VPAT that stands up to technical review because it is based on actual testing — not assumptions.
How we audit. How we remediate.
Automated Scan
We run your entire web property through axe-core, WAVE, and Lighthouse accessibility audits to identify programmatically detectable violations. This catches approximately 30-40% of accessibility issues — the low-hanging fruit that automated tools can reliably detect, including missing alt text, insufficient contrast, missing form labels, and structural markup errors.
Manual Screen Reader Testing
Automated tools cannot evaluate whether content is logically ordered, whether custom widgets are properly announced, or whether the user experience is actually functional via assistive technology. We manually test every page and interactive component using NVDA (Windows), VoiceOver (macOS/iOS), and TalkBack (Android). We navigate your entire site via keyboard alone, documenting every failure point.
Conformance Report
We deliver a prioritized conformance report mapping every identified violation to its WCAG 2.2 success criterion, severity level (critical, major, minor), affected user groups, and specific remediation guidance. Each finding includes the failing element, its location, the expected behavior, and the code-level fix required.
Remediation
For sites we have built, remediation is included. For third-party sites, we provide your development team with detailed remediation tickets including code examples, ARIA pattern references, and testing procedures for each fix. We offer direct remediation services for teams that need implementation support.
VPAT + Certification
Once remediation is complete, we re-test and produce the formal VPAT documentation in the current ITI format. The VPAT covers WCAG 2.2, Section 508, and EN 301 549 conformance criteria. We provide a conformance certification letter suitable for inclusion in government proposals and procurement responses.
Ongoing Monitoring
Accessibility is not a one-time fix. Content updates, feature additions, and third-party integrations can introduce new violations. We provide quarterly automated monitoring with manual spot-check reviews, alerting your team when new issues are detected and maintaining your VPAT as a living document.
ADA facility assessments for manufacturing operations.
Digital accessibility is only one dimension. For defense manufacturers with physical facilities that host government inspections, customer visits, or public-facing operations, ADA compliance of the physical space matters. A contracting officer visiting your production facility for a pre-award survey should not encounter accessibility barriers.
Through our Standard Accessibility practice, we conduct ADA facility assessments covering parking, entrance accessibility, path of travel, restroom compliance, signage, and emergency egress. We document findings against the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design and provide prioritized remediation plans with cost estimates for bringing your facility into compliance.
For manufacturers operating under federal contracts, Title III of the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act create obligations that extend to the physical workplace. A compliant facility is not just good practice — it is a condition of doing business with the government.
Standard Accessibility. Our compliance practice.
Accessibility and compliance services are operated through Standard Accessibility, our dedicated practice focused exclusively on digital and physical accessibility. This separation ensures that compliance services are delivered with the specialized focus and independence they require — our accessibility auditors evaluate conformance objectively, including on sites that Gangnath has built.
Standard Accessibility serves clients across industries, not only defense. Whether you need a VPAT for a government procurement, an accessibility audit for a commercial web application, or an ADA assessment of your manufacturing facility, the practice operates with the same rigor and documentation standards.
How accessibility affects your ability to win contracts.
The impact of accessibility compliance on contract eligibility is concrete and growing. FAR 39.2 requires that acquisitions of electronic and information technology comply with Section 508 standards unless an exception applies. The Revised 508 Standards, effective since 2018, incorporate WCAG 2.0 Level AA by reference — and agencies are increasingly requiring WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 conformance in new solicitations.
For defense manufacturers, the practical implications are straightforward. If you sell any product with a digital interface — whether that is a web portal, a software tool, a kiosk, or electronic documentation — the government buyer will evaluate its accessibility. If you provide services that include web development, content management, or information technology, Section 508 requirements will be in the Statement of Work. Having a current, credible VPAT ready before the solicitation drops gives you a competitive advantage over manufacturers who scramble to assess their compliance after the RFP is released.
Ready to close the compliance gap?
Whether you need a VPAT for an upcoming proposal, a full site accessibility audit, or an ADA facility assessment, start with a confidential consultation.