In last month’s blog, I tried to lay some ground work on the possibilities for HBCUs to increase their footprint in government contracts. The number one possibility that I pointed out was to access approximately $190 million of NASA funds. The question I asked was, “What does it take to access these dollars?” The initial response or strategy would be for HBCUs to team with Prime Contractors that have these goals incorporated in their solicitation.
However that is not happening. So the question is why the Prime Contractors, or should I say NASA Prime Contractors, are not teaming with HBCUs? Particularly since there is a one percent goal? I hope that throughout this blog journey we discover the reason because right now, at this moment in February 2018, I do not have an answer.
When I asked a NASA Contracting Officer about the 1% goal, he stated that the 1% goal is the overall agency goal to be accomplished across all centers. There are 10 NASA field centers located around the country. These field centers are: Ames (Research), Armstrong (Flight research), Glenn (Research), Goddard (Space Flight), JPL (Space Flight), Johnson (Space), Kennedy (Space), Langley (Research), Marshall (Space Flight) and Stennis (Space). The goal that gets incorporated into the RFP depends on the individual requirement and what the research shows. If the research doesn’t realistically support a higher goal then it’s adjusted for that requirement or may not be incorporated at all. Really, may not be incorporated at all??
Below is a link to NASA’s Market Research Guide
https://www.acquisition.gov/seven_steps/library/NASAmarket-research.pdf
It is a bit outdated, and some of the dollar thresholds have changed; but the substance still is pertinent. Market Research is how the government develops new specification for procurement and precedes soliciting bids or proposals. It will gauge what the industry current products and capabilities are, which is why HBCUs are encouraged to respond to these requests. The more HBCUs respond (typically two or more), the agency will take a look at what requirements need to be incorporated in the upcoming solicitation. However, if HBCUs don’t respond, then it appears there is no interest. Unfortunately, HBCUs have not been taught to respond to these such request, therefore they do not.
Here is where my opinion comes in based on my experience and research. Why would HBCUs respond to RFIs—requests for information—if the goal is meant to be for the Prime Contractors? Yes, I get that HBCUs can potentially receive their own prime award; however the likelihood of that happening is, well ... let’s go to: USASPENDING.GOV.
https://www.usaspending.gov/transparency/Pages/AgencySummary.aspx?AgencyCode=8000&FiscalYear=2016
The Top 10 Prime Contractors are not HBCUs and never have been. How about I go a step further and ask, "Who are the top 10 recipients of grants? Grants are generally what universities will get. Below is the answer:
1) Universities Space Research Association
2) Regents of the University of Colorado
3) University for Maryland
4) Center for the Advancement of Science in Space Inc.
5) National Institute of Aerospace Associates
6) Johns Hopkins University
7) Baylor College Medicine
8) Seiti Institute
9) Bay Area Environmental Research Institute
10) University of Hawaii Systems
The bigger question is out of the top 10 Prime Contractors, which includes, Boeing at $1,945,157,564, Lockheed at $1,412,121,687, and Jacobs Engineering Group $654,233,521, how much went to HBCUs? Was it a requirement? Not sure?
It is evident that things need to change not only at an agency level but the prime level, as well as among HBCUs. Requirements need to change if we expect change. NASA has started a NASA HBCU/MSI Technology Infusion Road Tour. This initiative is a pilot designed to assist NASA and large Prime Contractors meet and/or exceed the agency mandated goal. Primes need to collaborate more with HBCUs in order to successfully meet their goals. HBCUs need to get more involved in the federal contracting space if they want to see increased revenue in their schools. I will be following this “Road Tour” to see what happens and keep you posted.
I suggest that any HBCU anxious to learn about how to execute government contracts properly or any Prime Contractor that would like to know capabilities of HBCUs, join the Knowledge Sharing Center, which was specifically designed for this purpose.
