FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- The 92nd Contracting Squadron, along with the help of the Eastern Washington Procurement Technical Assistance Center, is scheduled to host a “Meet the Bigs” event that will teach small companies how to conduct business with government agencies from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Feb. 28, at the Spokane Airport Ramada.
This is the first event of its kind hosted by the two organizations, which will focus on helping the smaller companies get a foot into the government-business door.
“This is an awesome opportunity for companies trying to break into government business,” said Maj. Brian Robertson, 92nd CONS commander. “More businesses means more bidding, and more bidding can drive process down while growing small businesses in the local area.”
In 2016, 71 percent of Fairchild’s $56 million budget went directly into the local region.
In addition to helping small companies, the event will also host a free job fair geared toward trade skills, which is available for anyone to attend, including Fairchild dependents. Additionally, a representative from the Department of Veterans Affairs will be present during the event to help veterans find jobs.
“We hope this will be a productive event and provide ample networking opportunities for all parties,” said Rich Hedrick, 92nd CONS infrastructure flight chief. “Our objective is to have the larger firms from within the region headline the event along with city, county, state and federal agencies. These entities would make themselves available to smaller companies looking for subcontracting opportunities and information on how to do business with the government.”
So far, 15 large companies, 60 small businesses and 10 government agencies have confirmed their attendance for the event.
"The goal here is to help out local businesses while simultaneously driving (government) prices down,” said Mike Gilbert, 92nd CONS director of business operations and small business specialist. “By doing this, we are expanding our available resources, creating a network of new job opportunities and opening doors to more government interoperability.”