When contemplating a sole source 8(a) award, concerns can arise about the limitations of an 8(a) either to receive the award or to perform it with minimal risk. Also, the Government is often concerned about price competitiveness and/or the opportunity for protest, which could defeat one of the primary benefits of sole source contracting - speed.

WE MITIGATE PERFORMANCE RISK

EyakTek's Management Team's experience mitigates potential performance risk. While most 8(a) firms operate as sole proprietorships with limited management expertise, EyakTek, as an ANC subsidiary, is managed by a Board of highly qualified executives. They thoroughly understand federal procurement regulations, contracting procedures, and the needs of our government customers. Read more about our Management Team.

Our parent company, The Eyak Corporation, maintains substantial net worth while operating 8(a) subsidiaries such as EyakTek. Our significant financial backing enables us to perform large contracts without the performance risk typically associated with the financial concerns of 8(a) firms.

Additionally, EyakTek participates in the SBA's mentor-protégé program, with GTSI Corp as our official mentor. With 20 years of experience, GTSI supplies $1 billion worth of IT solutions to government organizations annually. GTSI provides EyakTek with financial support, technical resources, and access to the industry's most advanced integration, distribution, and logistics facilities. They also provide business services, including legal support and business development support. These services further diminish potential performance risk.

WE PROVIDE PRICE COMPETITIVENESS

There are multiple factors that the Government considers to determine a fair price when issuing sole source contract awards. We at EyakTek are interested in building long-term relationships, not short-term profits that lead to unhappy customers. We go to great lengths to ensure that our customers are comfortable with the prices they're paying.

Specifically, we conduct marketplace due diligence and can provide documented, verifiable prices of comparable products or services from existing federal contracts. We draw from contracts with a variety of agencies awarded to contractors large and small, and we emphasize recently awarded vehicles to ensure pricing is current. We then summarize the comparative data in a report, which is submitted along with our proposal.

WE LIMIT THE POTENTIAL FOR PROTEST RISK

Non-competitive awards to ANC 8(a) firms are not subject to protest on the basis of sole source justification nor the Competition In Contracting Act. They are subject to protest only on the basis of failure to comply with SBA contracting provisions for Limitations on Subcontracting or failure to comply with regulations such as BAA/TAA and other certifiable representations.

The protest risks of awarding a sole source 8(a) contract to an ANC are therefore no greater (less, in most cases) than the protest risks associated with full and open competition awards.

WE GET QUICK APPROVALS FROM THE SBA

To issue a sole source award to any 8(a) firm, the contracting officer must notify the SBA of its intent to issue the award. The SBA replies with approval, provided that the contractor is in good standing and is, in fact, an eligible 8(a). The contracting office then issues the award directly to the contractor.

There is a general perception that this SBA approval process is time-consuming and can cause substantial delays in the award process. However, by federal regulation, the SBA has only three days to approve or decline an award. If the SBA fails to reply within three days, the award is automatically considered approved. Furthermore, the SBA's Anchorage, Alaska office that supports EyakTek typically approves an award within 24 hours.