A CAGE (Commercial and Government Entity) code is a five character code of letters and numbers that identifies a company to the government. A DLA solicitation uses CAGE codes three ways: to identify you, the maker of each approved part, and the companies that won before.
How you get one
Your CAGE code is issued at the end of your SAM.gov registration. You need it before you can start a DIBBS registration, and the DIBBS account is opened under it: the Super User signs in as the CAGE code followed by 01.
Approved sources
When an item is described by a manufacturer's part number, the solicitation lists each approved manufacturer by name, CAGE code and part number. Those are the parts DLA will accept. For automated awards, quoting a superseding or previously approved part number, or a correction to the CAGE and part number cited, does not by itself disqualify the quote.
Past winners
The procurement history in a solicitation lists earlier awards with the winning CAGE code, contract number, quantity, unit price and date. Bid Prospect's NSN pages show that table and put a company name next to the CAGE when it matches an approved source.
Alerts by CAGE
DIBBS can email you new solicitations that name approved manufacturer CAGE codes you choose, which is a quick way to follow every request for parts from the makers you distribute.