Henry Hodge, CEO of HCH Enterprises LLC in East Providence, has wanted to do business with the federal defense and aerospace industries since he founded the IT security firm in 2001.
Last week, Hodge and about 300 other small business owners in New England got a chance to pursue their hopes of scoring a federal contract or subcontract when representatives of more than 50 federal agencies and prime federal contractors visited Rhode Island for a four-day business networking event.
The Spring Matchmaker conference, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense Northeast Regional Council for Small Business Education and Advocacy, the R.I. Procurement Technical Assistance Center and the Rhode Island chapter of the National Contract Management Association, was held June 10 to 13 at the Crowne Plaza at the Crossings in Warwick.
The conference offered small businesses a series of training sessions and presentations on ways to tap into the millions of dollars in available U.S. government contracts, as well as plenty of opportunities to network with personnel from companies and agencies such as Analog Devices, General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin Systems Integration, Tyco Electronics, Raytheon Co., Sikorsky, Textron Marine and Land Systems, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy.
Such agencies and prime contractors are mandated to award a certain percentage of their contracts and subcontracts to small businesses, which can be lucrative for those who know how to get the work. More than $115 million in Homeland Security spending was concentrated in Rhode Island alone in 2006, according to the R.I. Economic Development Corporation.
The “matchmaker” events, held every six months across the Northeast and last hosted in Rhode Island in 2003, have been responsible for thousands of opportunities for small businesses to make connections with federal agencies and contractors – many which resulted in contracts and subcontracts, said Dorothy Reynolds, PTAC’s program manager.
“This is the introduction, this is the first date, for the small business as well as the prime contractors and the federal agencies,” Reynolds said. “If there’s a good fit there, you follow up.”
Because they are obligated to reach out to small businesses and minority-owned businesses to fulfill set-asides in large federal contracts, the matchmaking events are eagerly anticipated by the federal agencies and prime contractors that attend, Reynolds said.
“One of the agencies that came to us this time said, ‘One of the reasons I’m coming is because every time I come here I find somebody who can fulfill a need for us,’ ” she said. “We’re finding small businesses here in New England who can be responsive and responsible.”
About 50 small businesses attended a comprehensive introduction to government contracting on June 10. On June 12, senior managers from the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport presented technical information about their contracts and discussed NUWC’s long-range plans and strategies. Networking opportunities for small businesses, prime contractors and federal agency representatives were scheduled throughout the conference.
Hodge, who oversees a full-time staff of six at HCH Enterprises, got a chance to meet face to face and pitch his company’s services to liaisons from General Dynamics, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. He hopes the opportunity represented the beginning of a dialogue that eventually results in a valuable subcontract.
“We made some really good contacts,” Hodge said. “It’s difficult, at best, to get into government contracting, and any kind of way to meet the people who are in that industry is a plus. You know, you can’t just knock on the door and try and get in. So this is a great tool.”
