{"73858":{"#nid":"73858","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Program Helps Save Jobs","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u0022GTPAC\u0022 stands for the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center, but in the small town of Bowdon, Ga., it means a whole lot more.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe GTPAC staff, specifically Jerry Shadinger, helped Bremen-Bowdon Manufacturing Co. win a U.S. government award to produce combat and military dress uniforms and outerwear. The multi-year, multi-million-dollar federal contract has helped keep the company in business, along with the 400 jobs it provides in a town of 1,840, said Elizabeth Plunkett-Buttimer, co-chair and co-CEO of the business started by her grandfather in the late 1940s.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022This kind of economic opportunity means a lot to a small town,\u0022 said Plunkett-Buttimer, who also serves as chair and CEO of a family-owned sister company, Bowdon Manufacturing Co. \u0022It\u0027s not numbers on a page, but people\u0027s lives.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ELike most U.S. textile and apparel manufacturers, Bremen-Bowdon\u0027s domestic retail customer base has been completely lost to inexpensive imports. The one remaining market is the U.S. government, which by law must secure a portion of its purchases from domestic sources. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Georgia Tech has helped us in the process of reinventing our business by giving us very important leads as to contracts, when they would become available and how to go about doing business with the government,\u0022 Plunkett-Buttimer said. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EShe said GTPAC seminars on how to do business with the government have been particularly helpful for her companies\u0027 strategic future.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022They have been instrumental in our transition from serving retail clothiers to serving the U.S. government,\u0022 she continued. \u0022This transition was necessary for our survival and for maintaining these manufacturing jobs in the U.S.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EGTPAC was formed in 1985 to provide assistance to Georgia companies interested in marketing services and products to the federal government. Today the program provides assistance at federal, state and local government levels all at no cost to the businesses.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022We provide firms with information, guidance and assistance on the procurement process,\u0022 said Zack Osborne, program manager at GTPAC\u0027s Warner Robins office.  \u0022In addition to individual counseling, we conduct training exercises and seminars around the state about procurement rules and procedures, and how to find bidding opportunities.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPrior to joining Georgia Tech 13 years ago, Osborne spent 28 years in procurement for the Air Force. His wealth of real-world experience is typical of GTPAC counselors, many of whom are retired from careers in government procurement. The GTPAC staff boasts a combined 270 years of government contracting experience.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to Warner Robins, GTPAC counselors are stationed at offices in Albany, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Rockmart and Savannah.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe GTPAC program, supported by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and Georgia Tech\u0027s Office of Economic Development and Technology Ventures in Atlanta, is premised on a belief that government contracts sustain local economies by creating and saving jobs in Georgia. That conclusion is supported by the numbers: In 2004 alone, DLA estimates that 15,251 jobs were either saved or created in Georgia through the program, with nearly 2,000 of those jobs found in the manufacturing sector.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition, 267 of GTPAC\u0027s 1,490 clients received government contracts worth a total of nearly $650 million last year, Osborne said. With an annual operating cost of about $921,000, which GTPAC shares equally with DLA, those figures translate into a return-on-investment of an astonishing 1,407 to 1, according to Osborne.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOver the past 20 years, GTPAC has helped Georgia companies earn contracts worth a combined $2.4 billion, he noted.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe level and amount of counseling provided by GTPAC varies with the individual companies\u0027 needs. While some already have government experience and need limited help with specific areas of the process, Osborne said, the majority of GTPAC\u0027s 1,500 clients are new to the government-procurement market and are primarily interested in broadening their customer base.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EGTPAC may work with a company for one year or more before it receives its first government contract, Osborne said, but under GTPAC\u0027s guidance along with a healthy dose of perseverance, many companies will eventually earn a contract of some kind.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022The hardest one to get is the first one,\u0022 he continued. \u0022Later contracts come easier because the company has experience under its belt. And as companies become more comfortable and successful with the process, they need us less and less.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe virtue of tenacity is exemplified by a Savannah, Ga.-based small business called Daniel Defense Inc. Owner and CEO Marty Daniel started the company in 1999 to specialize in the M-16 and M-4 weapons systems for military, law enforcement and civilian customers. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETwo years ago, he learned there was a need for an improved aiming-support subsystem known as the Rail Interface System which would in turn fit a number of M-16 improvements sought by the Department of the Navy. Since the desired specifications were similar to some of Daniel\u0027s products, he was encouraged to bid for the work. After designing a product which met the required specifications, Daniel contacted the GTPAC office in Savannah, where Osborne and Larry Blige provided comments and input that led to the final proposal. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022When we originally bid on this project, the solicitation was quite an undertaking,\u0022 recalled Daniel. \u0022We needed some help with the technical portion to make sure we turned in what the government was used to seeing.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHe added, \u0022We were on a tight schedule to complete the proposal. Zack came down from Warner Robins and worked with us through the weekend when it was down to the wire. We got the bid turned in about 30 minutes before UPS closed, but we got it in on time.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAfter receiving notification of a pre-award survey to be conducted by the Defense Contract Management Agency, Daniel turned again to GTPAC. Counselors provided direct hands-on assistance by reviewing the pre-award item checklist onsite with Daniel and his subcontractors prior to the government review.  GTPAC also participated in the actual pre-award survey at Daniel\u0027s request.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EEarlier this year Daniel was notified that his company along with two others had been selected to share a $50 million contract and received purchase orders to produce a limited run of products for testing. The winner of the testing phase stands to receive the large production orders.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Along with the contract were requirements for reports that had to be filed,\u0022 he said. \u0022Zack and Larry were also a huge help with those contract documents.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition, a quality assurance specialist from the Georgia Tech Savannah Regional Office, Don Pital, helped Daniel revise and simplify the company\u0027s ISO 9000 quality assurance plan while still meeting government standards. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EGTPAC\u0027s assistance is not limited to military contractors, Osborne emphasized.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022A company may want to provide something for the U.S. Forest Service or the Department of State or some other department,\u0022 he said. \u0022As long as it\u0027s a governmental agency at some level, we\u0027ll help them find a niche where they might be able to broaden their business base.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETony Richardson falls into that category. A commercial mortgage banker with 22 years of experience and a former assistant director of FDIC in Atlanta, Richardson founded a project management consulting firm, ARF Inc., 10 years ago.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EShortly after being established, AFR was certified as a small disadvantaged firm in the 8(a) program by the Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBA recommended that Richardson seek additional specialized technical assistance in developing a marketing strategy and proposal preparation methodology for government contraction. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Larry Selman and Larry Fountain from GTPAC have been tremendous with me throughout my entire career, Richardson said. \u0022They have taught me government contracting, government regulations, how to do business with the federal government - and they have helped me land three major contracts.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe most recent is a $12 million award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to perform inspections for new multi-family construction projects in eight states, Richardson said.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPrevious work, also for HUD, involved providing management and marketing services for single-family foreclosure properties.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Those guys at Georgia Tech helped me prepare not only the technical proposals, but they also helped me prepare the pricing proposals,\u0022 he said.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022You do most what you do best,\u0022 Richardson added. \u0022My expertise is housing, and with GTPAC\u0027s help, I\u0027ve found my niche with the federal government.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EResearch News \u0026amp; Publications Office\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n75 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 100\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAtlanta, Georgia 30308 USA\u003C\/strong\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMedia Relations Contact\u003C\/strong\u003E: John Toon (404-894-6986); E-mail: (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:john.toon@edi.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejohn.toon@edi.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E); Fax: (404-894-4545).\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETechnical Contact\u003C\/strong\u003E: Zack Osborne (478-953-1460); E-mail: (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:zack.osborne@edi.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ezack.osborne@edi.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E).\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWriter\u003C\/strong\u003E: Gary Goettling\n\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center helps companies find new business"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"The Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center (GTPAC) helped Bremen-Bowdon Manufacturing Co. win a U.S. government award to produce uniforms and outerwear. The federal contract has helped keep the company in business.","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"GTPAC helps Georgia firms find new business"}],"uid":"27303","created_gmt":"2005-09-05 00:00:00","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:03:38","author":"John Toon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2005-09-05T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2005-09-05T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"73859":{"id":"73859","type":"image","title":"Counselors work with company","body":null,"created":"1449178028","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:27:08","changed":"1475894681","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:44:41"}},"media_ids":["73859"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.edtv.gatech.edu\/","title":"Office of Economic Development and Technology Ventures"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.edi.gatech.edu\/Default.aspx?alias=www.edi.gatech.edu\/gtpac","title":"Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center"}],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cstrong\u003EJohn Toon\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EResearch News \u0026amp; Publications Office\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/contact\/index.html?id=jt7\u0022\u003EContact John Toon\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404-894-6986\u003C\/strong\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jtoon@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}