Small Business FAQ
Small Business Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Where can I see a list of Request for Proposals (RFP)/Request for Quotations (RFQ) to bid on?
- We are a certified minority-owned, women-owned, HUBZone, or Service disabled veteran-owned vendor. How can I do business with NOAA?
- How can I get in touch with a NOAA Contracting Officer?
- How can I learn about new program initiatives and timing?
- How do I contact my Regional Small Business representative?
- Does NOAA make purchases through GSA Schedules?
- When should I discuss contracting vehicles (e.g., STARS II, or MOBIS) with my prospective NOAA client?
- Does the NOAA Small Business Office review capability statements?
- We are an IT firm not presently involved with NOAALink. What can I do to get involved?
- What are the most often purchased/popular NAICS codes utilized by NOAA Program Offices?
- What percentages of NOAA acquisitions are below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT)?
- Where do I find information on the status of NOAALink Programs?
- Where do I find information on the status of Pro-Tech Programs?
- How much of the procurement at NOAA is done through Small Business?
- We are an IT services firm. Whom should we present our capabilities to?
- Technical Mangers are not answering my calls. What can I do to get their attention?
Q: Where can I see a list of Request for Proposals (RFP)/ Request for Quotations (RFQ) to bid on?
A: All of NOAA’s requirements that are estimated to be above $150,000 in value can be found on our forecast site located at www.FIDO.gov. RFPs
/RFQ’s are posted to the Government Point of Entry (GPE) in accordance with FAR 5.101. Some of the GPE’s that NOAA uses are Federal
Business Opportunities, GSA E-Buy, NASA SEWP, etc.
Q: We are a certified minority-owned, women-owned, HUBZone, or Service disabled veteran-owned vendor. How can I do business with
NOAA?
A: All prospective suppliers, including certified minority-owned, woman-owned, or disabled veteran-owned businesses can register their company
in the NOAA Small Business Vendor Profile database. Registration will capture your company’s diversity status. NOAA performs market research
for every requirement that it purchases. One significant tool NOAA uses in market research is the Request for Information/Sources Sought
notice. In order to ensure firms in socioeconomic categories are given first consideration for set aside contracts in accordance with
FAR 19.203(c), it is imperative that firms in these socioeconomic groups respond to these notices and tailor their capabilities to the specific
requirement at hand. Generic capability statements will not suffice in responding to these notices.
Your firm should also review NOAA’s Forecast and determine if any requirements match the capabilities of your firm. If so, you should contact the
POC listed for the requirement as well as inform the NOAA Small Business Office of your capabilities.
If you are a prospective supplier, register your company on NOAA Small Business Vendor Profile database. Prospective suppliers will only be
contacted when additional information is required about their company, product, or service. Registration in the NOAA Small Business Vendor
Profile database does not imply a contract, or intent to purchase by NOAA.
Q: How can I get in touch with a NOAA Contracting Officer?
A: Please ask yourself “Why do you need to speak to a Contracting Officer?” Contracting personnel are not technical in nature. More likely you
should be focusing your outreach attempts at the Program Office as they are the ones that have the specific requirements that you are looking to
bid on. NOAA’s Forecast is a great place to start your searches.
Contact our NOAA Acquisition Staff directly if you have a specific contract related questions. The NOAA Small Business Office would recommend
that you contact them directly prior to engaging a Contracting Officer. The Small Business Office can assist you with answers to most of your
questions, and if not, can put you in contact with the proper individual.
Q: How can I learn about new program initiatives and timing?
A: Follow our forecast at http://fido.gov/doc/aap/publicview.asp. You can also review NOAA’s website for the latest information relating to new
program initiatives.
Q: How do I contact my Regional Small Business representative?
A: The Small Business Office in Silver Spring MD is the main POC for inquiries from industry; however, you are welcome to reach out to any or all of
our offices. Contact is as follows for NOAA Small Business Offices:
- Headquarters, Silver Spring, MD – NOAASB@noaa.gov
- Eastern Acquisition Division, Norfolk, VA., and Kansas City, MO– EADSB@noaa.gov
- Western Acquisition Division, Seattle, WA and Boulder, CO – WADSB@noaa.gov
Please note that all NOAA requirements that are not set aside for small businesses are routed through the Silver Spring MD office for review
and further approvals. The HQ office requests that you work with them first and recommendations can be made for contact at the other
Divisions as necessary.
Q: Does NOAA make purchases through GSA Schedules?
A: Yes, NOAA has authority to utilize any GWAC that is available to the Government; some examples include GSA, SEWP, CIOSP3, etc.
Q: When should I discuss contracting vehicles (e.g., STARS II, or MOBIS) with my prospective NOAA client?
A: You should discuss vehicles that you have access to with clients whenever you are able to discuss your capabilities. The Program Offices within
NOAA are responsible for preliminary market research and letting them know how to contact your company is imperative for business
decisions. Existing vehicles are always considered first for viability, so if you have an existing contract please feel free to share with potential
clients.
Q: Does the NOAA Small Business Office review capability statements?
A: Yes. Please see the Doing Business at NOAA Checklist.
Q: We are an IT firm not presently involved with NOAALink. What can I do to get involved?
A: Your best option is to seek out subcontracting opportunities with one of the prime vendors. On a rare occasion you may see a requirement that
is solicited outside the prime vendors, but this happens very rarely. We will have opportunities in the 2nd quarter of FY 15 for both the 8(a) and
Small Business pools. Please review the NOAALink Program Office website for the most up to date information related to the vehicle.
Q: What are the most often purchased/popular NAICS codes utilized by NOAA Program Offices?
A: In FY 14 the top 10 most popular NAICS codes were as follows:
|
NAICS |
NAICS Description |
FY14 SB-Elig $ |
FY14 OTSB $ |
FY14 SB $ |
FY14 SB % |
|
541512 |
COMPUTER SYSTEMS DESIGN SERVICES |
$282,921,820 |
$236,445,122 |
$46,476,698 |
16.4% |
|
541519 |
OTHER COMPUTER RELATED SERVICES |
$180,267,038 |
$28,947,381 |
$151,319,657 |
83.9% |
|
541620 |
ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING SERVICES |
$132,003,113 |
$91,982,789 |
$40,020,324 |
30.3% |
|
541712 |
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHYSICAL, ENGINEERING, AND LIFE SCIENCES (EXCEPT BIOTECHNOLOGY) |
$106,379,968 |
$16,665,166 |
$89,714,802 |
84.3% |
|
541611 |
ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT AND GENERAL MANAGEMENT CONSULTING SERVICES |
$85,350,039 |
$36,250,695 |
$49,099,344 |
57.5% |
|
541511 |
CUSTOM COMPUTER PROGRAMMING SERVICES |
$49,548,876 |
$47,496,505 |
$2,052,371 |
4.1% |
|
334220 |
RADIO AND TELEVISION BROADCASTING AND WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING |
$47,134,475 |
$44,544,762 |
$2,589,713 |
5.5% |
|
541330 |
ENGINEERING SERVICES |
$46,294,611 |
$21,078,060 |
$25,216,551 |
54.5% |
|
541990 |
ALL OTHER PROFESSIONAL, SCIENTIFIC, AND TECHNICAL SERVICES |
$40,381,420 |
$4,863,426 |
$35,517,994 |
88.0% |
|
561210 |
FACILITIES SUPPORT SERVICES |
$33,001,541 |
$29,041,345 |
$3,960,197 |
12.0% |
Q: What percentages of NOAA acquisitions are below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT)?
A: Generally 90% of the transactions and 10% of the total dollar’s fall within the SAT category. NOAA spent over $1.37B in FY14 and had close to
12,000 transactions.
Q: Where do I find information on the status of NOAALink Programs?
A: Go to the NOAALink Website at: http://www.cio.noaa.gov/NOAALink/noaalink_contractor_information.html. The NOAA Small Business Office will
not be able to share any additional information than what has been released on this site. NOAA updates this site on a regular basis.
Q: Where do I find information on the status of Pro-Tech Programs?
A: Go to the Pro-Tech Website at: http://www.ago.noaa.gov/acquisition/pro-tech/10_pro-tech.html . The NOAA Small Business Office will not be
able to share any additional information than what has been released on this site. NOAA updates this site on a regular basis.
Q: How much of the procurement at NOAA is done through Small Business?
A: Note: Results below are based on Small Business Achievement Method from FPSD-NG.
| SMALL BUSINESS TYPE |
2007 % of $ |
2008 % of $ |
2009 % of $ |
2010 % of $ |
2011 % of $ |
2012 % of $ |
2013 % of $ |
2014 % of $ |
2015 % of $ |
| Small Business |
47.2% |
50.0% |
48.7% |
40.6% |
45.6% |
44.8% |
47.8% |
49.1% |
53.4% |
| Small Disadvantaged Business |
16.9% |
17.6% |
17.1% |
15.8% |
18.9% |
18.9% |
21.0% |
21.7% |
23.7% |
| 8(a) |
6.5% |
5.9% |
6.2% |
5.3% |
6.2% |
6.4% |
6.3% |
8.8% |
10.0% |
| Woman-Owned Small Business |
9.3% |
10.3% |
10.1% |
8.0% |
12.4% |
13.6% |
16.4% |
15.6% |
16.8% |
| HUBZone Small Business |
1.4% |
1.2% |
0.9% |
1.5% |
1.1% |
0.8% |
0.9% |
1.9% |
1.5% |
| Veteran-Owned Small Business |
3.8% |
4.9% |
4.3% |
5.2% |
6.0% |
5.4% |
7.2% |
6.0% |
6.1% |
| Service Disabled Veteran Owned SB |
2.2% |
2.4% |
2.0% |
3.4% |
4.0% |
3.0% |
4.3% |
4.6% |
4.3% |
Q. We are an IT services firm. Whom should we present our capabilities to?
A: The NOAALink Program is our vehicle for IT Services. There is rarely any opportunity outside of this vehicle for new firms. The NOAALink
Program Office will not be interested in speaking with you related to IT services unless you tailor your presentation to a specific need of the
office. All requirements that NOAA has that are over $150K are posted to our NOAA’s Forecast with a POC. You should feel free to reach out to
the POC and tailor your presentation to how you could help solve the requirement at hand. You should not speak about how you would like to be
a part of NOAALink.
Q. Technical Managers are not answering my calls. What can I do to get their attention?
A: The question to answer is "How is your business able to assist them (the Technical Manager)?"
-
- Are you focusing on a specific need of the agency that you found in NOAA’s Forecast, or are you randomly reaching out and hoping for a bite? Be specific in the requests for information.
- Are your requests for information tailored to a specific requirement? The NOAA Forecast is your ‘GO TO’ tool!
Please contact the NOAA Small Business Office for additional questions.
Contact Us
NOAA Small Business Program
1325 East-West Highway SOU6
Silver Spring Metro Center Building 2 (SSMC2)
11th Floor
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301-628-1411
Directions to Silver Spring