Procurement Assistance Center Opens at NEISBDC

Partners In Contracting Corporation (PICC) has collaborated with the Indiana Small Business Development Center network (ISBDC) to open a new Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) to serve companies in northeastern Indiana.  The new PTAC is based in the Northeast Indiana Small Business Development Center (NEISBDC), which is hosted by Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and located in IPFW's Hobson Center at 4312 Hobson Road, Suite B, in Fort Wayne.
 
Jeff Heinzmann, state director of the ISBDC, sees the partnership as a logical fit.  "By teaming with PICC, the ISBDC helps ensure a more detailed and thorough level of assistance in the procurement arena, which is very important for Fort Wayne and the rest of the Northeast region," he says. Heinzmann points out that part of the core mission of the ISBDC, helping Indiana businesses grow, is in line with what PICC does, and he expects additional collaboration between the two organizations with assistance from the Office of Community and Rural Affairs.  "We anticipate extending this partnership in the coming year to at least two other ISBDC regions," he says.

Fort Wayne businessman F.G. "Gil" Perry (see profile at right) has been hired to serve as PICC counselor/trainer for the new PTAC.  "The goal of a PTAC is to connect regional businesses with government agencies that may have a need for their products and services and to help the companies with certification and registration so they are eligible for government contracts," according to Perry. He says the PTAC also helps businesses with solicitation of government contracts and bid reviews and aids them with market research and strategic planning.  "That's why we're such a great partner with the Small Business Development Center, because we have similar objectives," he says.
 
Partners In Contracting Corporation, based in Hammond, was formed in 1984 through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense to serve as a Procurement Technical Assistance Center to help businesses in Indiana in the process of selling goods and services to the government, including federal, state and military agencies.  According to PICC Director Mary K. Kaczka, PTAC counselor/trainers aid business clients in several ways: assisting with registrations and certifications; providing market research; reviewing and bidding on solicitations; making them aware of contract performance requirements; and offering training so clients can better understand the market of government contracting.
 
Kaczka says these services enhance Indiana's economy by adding government contract dollars to local business revenue.  "Over the past six years that statistics are readily available, PICC clients have reported receiving $448 million in contract awards, creating or retaining 10,535 jobs," she notes.  The Northeast Indiana PTAC is just one of three new PICC centers planned for Indiana; according to Kaczka, other centers are in the works for Indianapolis and Crane, home of the U.S. Navy's Naval Surface Warfare Center.
 
The local PTAC is expected to be a strategic partner in supply chain development with the Northeast Indiana Defense Cluster organization (NEIDC), an initiative of the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership.  Bruce Menshy of Raytheon Network Centric Systems, who co-chairs the NEIDC as well as serving on PICC's board of directors, predicts the PTAC will bring more defense business to Northeast Indiana and sees Gil Perry as being an integral part of the process.  "Gil brings a wealth of knowledge to the local PTAC with his many years of leadership experience in defense contractor supply chain and subcontracting," he observes.
 
While the PTAC will be closely involved with area defense contractors, these businesses will not be its sole focus.  Kaczka says the PICC also serves companies that provide services such as staffing and training, construction, information technology, and architectural and engineering design, among others.
 
To schedule an appointment with the Northeast Indiana PTAC, contact Gil Perry at 260-413-1109 or e-mail fgperry@piccorp.org.  For more information on the Indiana PICC, visit www.piccorp.org or call Mary K. Kaczka at 219-931-7561.