MARQUETTE — Small businesses wanting to work with the defense and homeland security sectors don’t have to be intimidated in their pursuit of contracts.

Northern Michigan University Continuing Education and Workforce Development hosted a program for those businesses on Wednesday at NMU’s Northern Center.

NMU is working with the Michigan Economic Development Corp. and the Michigan Defense Center to help businesses reduce obstacles that could be preventing them from entering these sectors.

Defense industry experts who spoke at a panel discussion were: LeAnne Kachmarsky, procurement counselor for the Northwest Michigan Procurement Technical Assistance Center, or PTAC; Glen Simula, president of GS Engineering, based in Houghton; Brad McPhee, president of the Rapid River-based Creative Composites; and Mark Massicotte, president of L’Anse Manufacturing Inc.

Kachmarsky, based in Marquette, talked about PTAC.

“If you’re selling to the government, your first step should be to contact your PTAC,” she said.

PTAC assists businesses that want to sell to the government on all levels — federal and state, as well as local and county municipalities, universities and others, she said.

The goal is to expand the number of small businesses capable of selling to the government and create a more diverse supplier base to increase competition.

“The end result is really that the taxpayer gets a better value,” Kachmarsky said.

Most PTAC services are provided at no cost since it’s funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the Defense Logistics Agency and the MEDC, and hosted by Networks Northwest.

PTAC can help businesses in a number of ways.

“Think of us as the bridge between you, the business, with your product and your service, bridging that gap over to the government buyer,” Kachmarsky said.

Its services include:

≤ assistance with registrations and certifications;

≤ marketing research and on government purchases, past awards and procurement history;

≤ bid matching and identifying bid opportunities;

≤ assistance with reviewing solicitations and bid proposals;

≤ support with contract performance and getting paid for work;

≤ training, networking and matchmaking events; and

≤ federal acquisition regulations.

Patience is one trait successful government contractors need, she said.

“The government has its own process and it moves at its own pace,” Kachmarsky said. “It can be a year or two before you get your first win.”

Simula said the biggest focus of his company, located near Michigan Tech University, is engineering design, with customers including the departments of defense and agriculture.

The goal, he said, is to design better parts for the government.

Simula had moved his company away from a university structure to a small business.

“At Michigan Tech, we could make prototypes, we could help out, but we couldn’t sell a product,” he said. “We couldn’t put a warranty out there.”

Simula said he chose the military sector over the private sector because of the contract lengths and stability.

He acknowledged PTAC has helped GS Engineering by being a source of information.

“The biggest thing I will say for small businesses starting out is just start asking question after question after question, and learn as much as you can before you start,” Simula said.

McPhee said Creative Composites designs and manufactures lightweight structures, primarily using composite materials such as carbon fiber, fiberglass and Kevlar. About 90% of its work is with the government, mostly the defense department, although McPhee noted he wants to move more into the aerospace field, either in a defense or commercial capacity.

McPhee said that about 10 to 12 years ago, the company discovered resources such as PTAC and the MEDC that helped it overcome hurdles like learning about regulations and contractual issues.

“They are proactively listening as well as going out and finding out what’s available and bringing those things back to the small companies,” McPhee said.

He also is a big proponent of searching for answers.

“Don’t be afraid of asking your customers for help,” McPhee said.

Massicotte said L’Anse Manufacturing is involved with precision machining, light assembly and other services.

He acknowledged that more training and workforce development, among other things, had been needed for his company’s success with government contracts.

“PTAC is this huge resource that you need to rely on,” Massicotte said, pointing out that earning certificates in areas such as the International Organization for Standardization eliminates competition.

Stephanie Zadroga-Langlois, director of Continuing Education and Workforce Development, mentioned the Bid Targeting System, an online tool designed by the Michigan Defense Center to support Michigan businesses in their pursuit of contracts.

“It helps kind of identify where you guys would need to strengthen, and also what’s out there with the government that might be a nice match for you with the industry that you have,” Zadroga-Langlois said.

She noted the tool scores a business and identifies steps to take to improve its score.

Christie Bleck can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net.