Armaments maker Sig Sauer Inc. announced its final delivery of prototypes to the U.S. Army for the Next Generation Squad Weapons systems this week.

The Army plans to select one of three firms -- the other two are Textron and General Dynamics -- to manufacture the new weapons system in the first quarter of fiscal 2022.

Fielding of the weapons is expected to start in late 2022, according to the Army.

The Sig Sauer system includes hybrid ammunition with a lighter weight cartridge, a belt-fed light-weight machine gun, a rifle and suppressors, the company said Tuesday in a press release.

"Throughout the program, we have been given unprecedented access to the soldiers and Marines who will ultimately field these weapons," Ron Cohen, Sig Sauer president, said Tuesday in a press release.

"These soldier touchpoint events have led to rapid advancements over the current weapons systems and resulted in our delivery of the most innovative Next Generation Squad Weapons system to the U.S. Army," Cohen said.

Once the Army makes its selection, the new weapons system will replace the M4A1 carbine and M249 squad automatic weapon in infantry units.

The U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center has said the weapons program is expected to "significantly increase lethality and probability of hit at the squad level."

The weapons are also designed for lighter weight than those they replace, which officials have called an additional logistical benefit.

"The 6.8mm projectile [ammunition] will outperform even the most modern 5.56mm and 7.62mm ammunition," Army officials have said. "These weapon systems will give soldiers significant capability improvements in accuracy, range, signature management, and lethality."

The ammunition is polymer-cased for lightness, instead of using brass, and made by True Velocity Ammunition LLC, which also announced this week it has delivered 625,000 rounds to the Army for testing purposes.

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