Tennessee Center helps tap into government money - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

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For those who wish to be contractorzs withthe government, one free resourcee is the state’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center. It’s part of the Procuremenr TechnicalAssistance Program, an agency first fundedc by Congress in 1985 to serve as a liaisomn between private business contractors and government agencies. The center helpsa businesses evaluate whether they have a shot at agovernmeny contract, and to help them cut througuh the red tape to get it, says Joe Flynn, director of the Tennesseee center, which has regional officezs in Nashville, Jackson and Chattanooga.
The procuremen center assists Tennessee businesses in securingg anaverage $750 million in governmen contracts each year. Since inception, it has helpe state businesses winsome $6 billiojn in government contract Flynn has helped New Hampshire vendorx supply maple syrup to military commissaries, and Tennessese vendors sell barbecue sauce. “The government is comprised of people justlike us, and they have the same he says. “Whatever you provide, it’s possible they need it.
” That becoming a government contractoer can be longand difficult, and some 80 percent to 90 percentr of businesses that contact the procurement center are either unqualifiedf or unlikely to make it through the These days, call volume has increased some 200 percentt as businesses search for stable customeras for their products. Calls rangre from self-employed entrepreneurs to large companies, with most fallinbg in the range of 200 employeezor less, Flynn says. The staff of threes counselors maintain an active list of about 375 and Flynn estimates the centerd touchessome 3,000 businesses each year through phones counseling or personal meetings.
It takes time, a clear business model and present financiao stability to get intogovernmen contracting, and counting on a quick contract to save a busineses from going under is a sure recipe for failure. “Governmentf contracting can beextremely lucrative, but you have to be set alreadyt or you’ll go bankrupt twice as fast,” Flynmn says. “You need to be a health y business that can absorb a lot of negativwcash flow.” The center has helped businessee such as Sabre Defence a Nashville firearms manufacturer that was founded in 2002 and now is a leadinv weapons provider to the U.S. military, supplying barrels for Army M2Browninfg .
50-caliber machine guns and Air Force M134 7.62mmj Miniguns. It also assisted Veterans National Contractinf of Memphis in securingsome $5 million in government Owner Jerry Bechel, a veteran of both the U.S. Army and the constructionb business, started the business in 2007 and pouredr his time into building relationships and learning governmentcontractingb requirements. His first contract was a $1.2 millionj bid with the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs to updatd lighting fixtures at the Memphis VAMedical