Military Business Greensboro Conferees Urged T o Tap Into
$2.5 Billion Procurements Budget

 

By Paul Fogleman, Publisher

 

To those who have concluded that textiles manufacturing is dead or dying, here is a message from some prominent insiders:

“Our industry is not dead. We’re different.”

Jim Leonard, who organized a military procurement conference in Greensboro November 10, emphasized this to over 200 textiles and hosiery representatives. The speakers backed him up with their presentations.

Leonard, a former undersecretary for textiles in the U.S. Department of Commerce, now works in the N.C. Department of Commerce which sponsored the sellout gathering. International Market Solutions was the co-sponsor.

Military procurement is a $2.4 billion a year business for textiles and hosiery manufacturers. And it’s not just apparel and socks. Helmets, armaments, shelters, medical supplies and more are provided by the textiles industry. For some companies, government contracts have kept the doors open.

It was fitting that the opening session speaker was Dr. Blanton Godfrey, dean of the College of Textiles at N.C. State University. Blanton’s presentation could have been described as a Star Wars theme for textiles, including fibers that act as artificial muscles or high-tech garments for the visually-impaired with transistors to warn of potential collisions.

Research and possibilities in textiles have excited a new generation of future executives, Blanton said. Enrollment in the College of Textiles is over 1,000 graduate and undergraduates reflecting a 57 percent increase over the past five years.

As a result of support and innovations coming from the College of Textiles, North Carolina’s industry is poised to receive contracts for hundreds of millions of dollars, according to Scott Dorney, executive director of the N.C. Military Business Center based in Fayetteville.

Government procurement is to give priority to U.S. domestic manufacturers under terms of the Berry Amendment just recently added to the $700 billion TART appropriation approved by Congress. The amendment was in language drafted by U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell, a freshman member of Congress from the Sixth N.C. District. Kissell was among the speakers at the conference.

Dorney said that because of the Berry Amendment over 58 percent of textiles and hosiery procurements come from domestic sources. Several contractors were attending the conference.

“The military buys everything that’s legal to buy,” said Dorney. This includes purchases by Veterans Administration hospitals, Homeland Security operations, and other Defense Department agencies.

Dorney said contracts do not come automatically to bidders. “You must market to the federal government,” he stressed. He urged the representatives to develop company marketing materials for federal offices and to obtain codes for bidding. He recommended interested companies to contact Teresa Bouchonnet (828-349-3878), business development specialist, for guidance and support.

Col. Kevin Stoddard, deputy director, Clothing and Textile Procurement Defense Supply Center, Philadelphia, focused his comments on the importance of domestic manufacturers in the supply chain.

“You are as important in our mission as the soldier on the front line,” he declard. “Your failure to produce will be felt on the battlefield.” He said North Carolina is a force to be reckoned with and “it is important that you get to know us.”

Stoddard said textiles and clothing procurements in FY 2010 will be $2.5 billion and probably more. He said 50 percent of procurements are from small businesses with the other 50 percent from large companies and distributors.

Lowest prices in bids do not always result in contracts, he advised. Low prices can be a signal the bidder does not understand the complexities or the specifications of the advertised product, he added.

Among the successful bidders addressing the conference was Patrick Palmer, executive vice president of Burlington Worldwide, a division of Burlington Industries.

Burlington is a prime vendor for Army dress uniforms made in a plant in Rep. Kissell’s congressional district. Praising Kissell for his interest in military business procurements, Palmer said Kissell had visited the Laurinburg plant three times.

Stressing the importance of the contract and its complexity, Palmer said Burlington quality control personnel will have submitted 40,000 swatches for approval and expects no rejections.

 

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