Set-Aside Projects; The Key to Minority Contracting Success

If you've been doing business in the commercial contracting world you may have been involved with one of several local or regional minority certification programs. These programs are set up to give deserving contractors a "foot in the door" on contracts that, prior to the programs, they may have had no chance of winning.

In the Federal contracting arena, there are also minority certifications for which a contractor can qualify. The Federal programs offer Set-Aside projects that ONLY those with the proper certification can bid on. It allows the contractor not to be just a subcontractor helping a non-minority firm reach it's "good faith" goals, it gives them an opportunity to be the Prime Contractor in charge of the entire contract.

The key Federal minority certifications are Small Business, 8(a), Hubzone (different from the local/regional HUB programs), and Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business. The Small Business designation usually refers to businesses whose gross income is below a certain 3 year average. 8(a) refers to a program set up for ethnic minority firms to help them attain Federal contracts, it has a set time limit in which a contractor will eventually "graduate" from the program. The Hubzone program was set up to favor companies whose primary office location is within a federally designated HUB (Historically Underutilized Business) Zone, and a percentage of the company's employees must also reside in the Zone. Lastly, the Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) was set up to allow Veterans who were wounded/disabled in the service of their country to gain special status in the pursuit of Government contracts.

Having one of the above certifications will help you gain work as a subcontractor on "non set-aside" or "Full and Open" contracts, as the Prime contractor is still bound by law to subcontract a percentage of the work to minority firms. But the most lucrative contract is the Small Business Set-Aside, 8(a) Set-Aside, etc. It can shorten the list of bidders, it certainly puts everyone on a level playing field, and allows opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable.

If you are just venturing into the world of Federal minority contracting or have gotten into it and are struggling with all of the rules, paperwork, proposals, etc. our company is here to assist and support you. We can explain the process of getting set up to pursue set-aside projects. We offer a teaming approach where we will partner with you, allowing you to use our extensive resume of Past Performance along with preparing proposals, project management, etc. We can be your point of contact with the Government handling all of the management/paperwork issues and allowing you to focus on your particular area of work. Or we can support/advise you in specific areas in which you may be having difficulty.

If you want to know more, please go to our website: http://www.advan-con.net/