By Courtney Smedick, Marketing Specialist, North Carolina Military Business Center
A new initiative launched by the North Carolina Military Business Center targets subcontracting opportunities for North Carolina companies with major DoD contractors.
Much of our effort in the North Carolina Military Business Center (NCMBC) is directed to helping North Carolina companies win defense and other federal prime contracts. Department of Defense (DoD) prime contracts in North Carolina totaled over $2.97 billion in federal fiscal year 2007 (based on “place of performance” data provided by DoD).
While prime contracts garner much attention, subcontracting dollars – while difficult to quantify – provide significant revenues for many businesses in our state. Although the NCMBC has long targeted construction-related subcontracts, a new initiative targets growing subcontracting by major DoD prime contractors with North Carolina businesses.
To kick off this subcontracting initiative, the NCMBC is partnering with Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC) hosted a “Subcontracting Expo 2008” concurrent with Representative Robin Hayes’ Seventh Annual Defense and Economic Development Trade Show on August 12, 2008.
Major defense contractors, including General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin and Boeing – among many others – have consistently attended the Hayes Trade Show. North Carolina businesses, large and small, have had the opportunity to network informally with these major defense primes before and during the show each year.
This year, the NCMBC “institutionalized” the networking process. Armed with the names of attending primes, the NCMBC canvassed the points of contact for these companies about their need for subcontractors and suppliers. Most defense primes have evolving needs for subcontractors – and a constant need to meet the goals of their subcontracting plans, which are required for all defense contracts with subcontracting potential valued at over $500,000.
Major primes are provided the NCMBC with the “NAICS” codes of suppliers and subcontractors that they need. The NCMBC identified, notified and requested qualification information from North Carolina companies that meet the profiles provided by the major primes. Based on responses from North Carolina businesses, the primes selected the businesses they wanted to meet with during “Subcontracting Expo 2008.”
The Expo ran concurrently with the trade show with FTCC providing the meeting facilities, and the NCMBC scheduling potential subs to meet with the primes in 10-15 minute structured “speed networking” sessions.
The objective of this “matchmaking” activity was to establish relationships between defense primes and North Carolina businesses – relationships that sooner or later will result in contract dollars, job creation and expanded tax bases in our communities.
For more information about subcontracting, contact us at admin@ncmbc.us or call 910-323-4587.
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