Preston named SBA administrator

Steven Preston, a financial management expert, was sworn in Monday as the new administrator of the Small Business Administration.

Small business | In brief

The Homeland Security Department anticipates announcing in July the winners of FirstSource, a $3 billion small-business IT contract to help the department integrate and standardize its IT systems and tools.

'We want them to approach us'

If RS Information Systems Inc.'s federal contracts were a remake of the movie "A Star Is Born," 1 Source Consulting Inc. would play the title role: the character who starts out in a supporting part but quickly is tapped to headline the show.

MicroTech wins $365M Veterans Affairs' contract

As the Veteran's Affairs Department undergoes a major process and systems transformation, the agency will buy up to $365 million worth of Microsoft software and services from MicroTech LLC.

SBA proposes women-owned small-biz assistance

The Small Business Administration is proposing to implement a new regulation aimed at providing more contracting opportunities for women-owned small businesses.

Guident wins Energy lab integration work

Guident Technologies Inc. won a five-year, $4.9 million task order from the Energy Department's Los Alamos Laboratory to deliver service support for Oracle solutions.

Past is prologue for GD partners

Lynwood Owens is deep in discussions with a woman-owned 8(a) business that for the past seven years has worked with the U.S. Agency for International Development. The contract is coming up for recompete at year's end, and Owens, a program manager at General Dynamics Network Systems, sees a change in how the smaller company handles the contract: It would become the prime contractor to USAID, and the General Dynamics unit would be its subcontractor.

Small business: In brief

The rhetoric between congressional leaders and the Small Business Administration continues, with Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) firing the latest shot.

Sigma Space Partners docks with NASA for support work

Sigma Space Partners will provide services and support to NASA under a five-year contract worth up to $14.4 million.

Kerry blasts closure of Veteran's Contracting Office

The closure of the Veteran's Contracting Office at the Small Business Administration and the planned cancellation of the Veterans Advisory Committee in September have drawn the ire of Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.).

Small business: In brief

Logistics Applications Inc. finally won a facilities management services contract with the Energy Department, after the company's initial 2005 win of the deal was protested by the National Treasury Employees Union.

Women in Technology honors IT leaders

Mentoring was the dominate theme Thursday night as industry group Women in Technology recognized five leaders in the IT community.

Small companies build market muscle

The Top 100 isn't exclusively the land of giants. Many small and midsized businesses elbow their way onto the list each year.

House Democrats introduce SBA reform bill

The Democrats on the House Small Business Committee proposed reauthorization legislation today that would overhaul the Small Business Administration. The bill would increase the federal government's small-business prime contracting goal from 23 percent to 30 percent.

Logistics Applications prevails in DOE bid protest

The second time around might be the charm for Logistics Applications Inc., which has had to wait more than a year to take over its largest contract win ever.

Services, support dominate second quarter federal IT awards

Nearly half of the $11 billion in federal IT contract awards in the second quarter of fiscal 2006 were made for professional services or maintenance support services, according to a new report from Input Inc.

DHS deflects criticism of small biz rules

The Homeland Security Department is defending its small business subcontracting practices against fears that its mentor-protégé program actually may penalize some small businesses.

Merlin wins NOAA center tech support work

Merlin Technical Solutions Inc. won a $2.5 million contract to maintain and support the hardware and software operations for a key data collection arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Army awards deals under IMOD program

Ten companies were awarded contracts late Friday under the Army's $4 billion Infrastructure Modernization program that will update the fiber-optic cable and wireless communications lines at major bases and installations.

Nine companies win Army contracts for computer equipment

The Army awarded nine contracts late yesterday under a $5 billion procurement vehicle designed to standardize desktop and notebook computer purchases.