November 2017 - In This Issue:
ABOUT US

The SBTDC/PTAC Program's purpose is to generate employment and improve the general economic condition of the state by assisting  North Carolina companies including those eligible for business development programs for local, state and federal government contracts. We provide procurement technical assistance by offering no-fee and confidential counseling on selling your products and/or services to the appropriate local, state or federal government agency.

THE TEAM
MARK MILLS
PTAC Program Director
919.600.6096


GEORGE GRIFFIN

PTAC Counselor 
Greensboro / Winston-Salem
336.256.9302


REBECCA BARBOUR

PTAC Counselor
Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill
919.513.0623


SCOTT BARKER
PTAC Counselor 
Elizabeth City / Greenville / Wilmington
252.737.1369


DON CARMEN
PTAC Counselor 
Fayetteville / Pembroke
910.672.1352

ADDITIONAL SBTDC RESOURCES
ACCELERATE: A BLOG FOR CEOs OF MID-SIZED FIRMS
SBTDC's Strategy and Growth Services blog, Accelerate, helps CEOs of mid-sized companies make business and leadership improvements through helpful insight, resources, and tools.
Learn more »


TECHNOLOGY COMMERCIALIZATION SERVICES
The SBTDC's Technology Commercialization Services team provides business counseling to small to mid-sized business owners, university researchers, and entrepreneurs looking to advance their innovations to the marketplace.
Learn more »


INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
The SBTDC's International Business Development Specialists assists small and mid-sized businesses with export planning and exporting.
Learn more »
Director's Corner:
2017 Technology Commercialization Symposium
By Mark G. Mills, SBTDC/PTAC Program Director at North Carolina State University

The 2017 SBIR/STTR Symposium takes a deep dive into the SBIR/STTR funding opportunities that are less current in North Carolina. Invited are agency representatives from Department of Defense (DoD) (Chem Bio, DARPA, Army), NASA, USDA, DOE and NSF, each will discuss their SBIR/STTR funding mechanisms in detail.  Whether you are new to the SBIR program or are a seasoned awardee, this symposium will provide updates on many existing opportunities that may suit your projects.  One-on-one meetings will be available with agency reps throughout the day to address specific questions you have.

  Register registration button

Download the symposium flyer and agenda.  

For additional information please contact:
John Ujvari, SBIR / Technology Counselor
Small Business & Technology Development Center (SBTDC)
Telelphone: (919) 962-8297
e-mail:  sbir@sbtdc.org
website:  www.sbtdc.org/tech

The North Carolina Defense Industry Diversification Initiative (NC DIDI)
 
 
  
By By Nimasheena N. Burns, Director Communications and Project Management, NC Department of Military and Veterans Affairs
The North Carolina Defense Industry Diversification Initiative (NC DIDI) is excited to announce the launch of the initiatives mapping survey for the state's defense supply chain. This initiative is being managed through a partnership of the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and NC State's Industry Expansion Solutions.  With 75% of business professionals reporting a lack of visibility into their supply chains, NC DIDI has coordinated the development of a comprehensive survey of North Carolina defense contractors. The purpose of this survey is to gather insights that will help us to better understand the unique challenges facing our defense companies as well as how we can identify new opportunities for them to grow, diversify, and enter new markets.
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Small Business Administration (SBA) Updates
  
 
 
SBA Adopts OMB Changes for its Table of Size Standards
SBA issued a final rule adopting the U.S. Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) revision for 2017. NAICS 2017 created 21 new industries by reclassifying, combining or splitting 29 existing industries under NAICS in 2012.  

The change results in an increase to size standards for six NAICS 2012 industries: (one in Sector 21, Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas extraction; three in Sector 31-33, Manufacturing; and two in Sector 44-45, Retail Trade) and part of one industry in Sector 44-45, a decrease to size standards for two (one in Sector 21 and one in Sector 51, Information), a change in the size standard measure from average annual revenues to number of employees for one in Sector 51, and no change in size standards for twenty industries and part of one industry.  

Complete information on the relationship between NAICS 2012 and NAICS 2017 is available on the U.S. Census Bureau website. 

For more information on SBA revisions to its small business size standards, click on "What's New with Size Standards" on SBA's website at http://www.sba.gov/size .

Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Program NAICS Code Updates
  
 
 
The U.S. Small Business Administration ("SBA") has updated the North American  Industry Classification System ("NAICS") codes authorized for use in the Women Owned Small Business ("WOSB") Federal Contract Program ("WOSB Program"). The  update is being made to reflect the U.S. Office of Management and Budget's NAICS  revision for 2017, identified as NAICS 2017. NAICS 2017 created 21 new industries by  reclassifying, combining, or splitting 29 NAICS 2012 industry codes. These changes  would impact eight of the 2012 NAICS codes designated for use under the WOSB  Program. The designations of industries contained in SBA's notice of NAICS Code  updates, apply to all solicitations issued on, or after, October 1, 2017. 82 Fed. Reg.  47277.

"The RISE Act allows SBA to give agencies double credit for contracting goaling 
purposes!" Small Business Administration Bulletin, October 13, 2017. Retrieved from govdelivery.com
  
In an October 13, 2017 bulletin, the Small Business Administration reminded the HUBZone community that, during the period of a presidentially declared major disaster, procuring agencies can provide contracting preferences for the small businesses located in the affected areas. The Recovery Improvements for Small Entities After Disaster Act of 2015 ("RISE Act") authorizes SBA to: establish contracting preferences for small businesses located in disaster areas, including HUBZone firms, and give agencies double credit for awards to these small businesses that are located in the presidentially declared major disaster areas. For more information, please see: RISE Act § 2108, 15 U.S.C. 644(f), FAR § 6.208, FAR § 26.202-1

General Services Administration (GSA) Update
 
 
 
Direct your clients to GSA's MAS Roadmap
GSA's website is full of information about the contract award process, but  interviews with vendors tell us many find the Federal Acquisition Service's (FAS)  pages jargon-heavy and hard to navigate, with information not appearing where  it would be most useful. Many also say they find the process of getting on the  Multiple Award Schedules (MAS) very confusing. This is an obvious barrier for  companies trying to do business with the government, and seems to be hitting  small and innovative ones especially hard.

But that's all changing, thanks to GSA's MAS Roadmap, a new website designed to make it  easier for businesses of all sizes to get started doing business with the federal government. The  roadmap is a new website that offers support to potential vendors and breaks down the offer
process into discrete, easy to follow step-by-step instructions. 
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PTAC Client Success Story  
 
 
Survival Innovations, LLC.


In 2004, Mark Trexler, a former Army helicopter pilot, started Survival Innovations as a Service Disabled Veteran- Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) in Asheville, North Carolina. Mark and his business partner, Jason Smith, reached  out to then-PTAC counselor Mark Mills and has been working with the SBTDC/PTAC team for over 14 years.



Survival Innovations' core focus is Aviation Life Support Equipment. They provide Design and Development Services, often working directly with a customer to fill a critical warfighter need. Production Services include their own products  as well as build-to-print manufacturing for the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and prime contractors such as Lockheed-Martin Corporation (LMCo) and United Technologies Aviation Systems (UTAS). In addition, they provide Product Support Services for training, technical manuals, and product servicing.

Survival Innovations' projects include: Aircrew Restraint Systems, Helicopter Seat Cushions, Advanced Flotation Systems, CBR Equipment Carriers, Integrated Harness Assemblies, and Ejection Seat components, among many others. Designs include upgrade and installation of one-of-a-kind test equipment for military test facilities.

Survival Innovations employees are named on ten patents and won the 2012 Patent of the Year Award by the Naval Air Warfare Center. They currently have contracts with the DLA, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, and UTAS. They will move into a newly-purchased facility near the Asheville Regional Airport late in 2017.



SELLING TO THE GOVERNMENT

5 West Hargett St., Suite 600
Raleigh, NC 27601
919.600.5998