TESTIMONIALS:

"As a company just getting started in government contracting, there is
a lot to learn.   Trying to find and understand information is not only time
consuming, but can be frustrating.   It helps to have someone to go to
that has the knowledge to help – Chuck Downey is that person.   Chuck
assisted in ensuring that our company was registered on the appropriate
websites, established our Bid Match criteria and was always available
to answer questions.   If your company does not have an individual
dedicated to DOD business, it would be of great benefit to use Downey
Consulting."

Laurie Elsener
Sales Project Manager
Great Lakes Fasteners

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"Given the decreased number of opportunities currently available in Michigan's
traditional manufacturing sectors, our decision last year to branch out into
government contracting was an obvious one. Implementing that decision,
however, was where the real challenge began. The numerous government
regulations and requirements can be rather intimidating to those not
familiar with it. Fortunately for us we had an experienced guy like
Chuck Downey to help guide us through. Chuck's assistance and advice
were instrumental in bringing Clark Manufacturing up to speed on the
government bidding process in a matter of months, instead of the year
or two it would have taken otherwise."

Bob Milliron
President
Clark Manufacturing

****


"Chuck was a big help in introducing me to Bidmatch and explaining the
registrations and certification necessary to do government contracting.
I’m now getting bids accepted quite often”.

Kurt Luedtke
President
Luedtke Engineering


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        FAQ' s (Frequently Asked Questions):


1.  Why is Government Contracting so complex?

The Federal government has decided that it will only do business
(buy things the government needs) via electronic means. That's good
in that you can work with one means to deal with most bids.  That's
bad in that you have to be "savvy' in the use of the internet and all its
complex uses.  Also, the government wants to to be very confident
that security is maintained at all times.  They have developed a
complex series of registrations, certifications, and passwords to
ensure that information is accurately and securely moved throughout
their computer systems.  It can be intimidating if you don't spend all
your time working with the government files and systems.  That
difficulty is precisely why we think Downey Consulting can help you
deal with all that "stuff" and just present you with the information you
need to make those quick decisions regarding "bid or no bid" .
 

2. What is the best approach to start the government contracting process?

The PTAC organization (Procurement Technical Assistance Center)
offers a free introduction to the different levels of government (local,
state, federal and international) and how they work.  They can help you
find the internet locations to enter the information needed for the multi-
tude of registrations, certifications and passwords needed to navigate
the various websites where you might find bids and solicitations that
you would like to bid on. PTAC offers a large variety of classes that you
can attend (most are free) to learn how to work  with all the systems
that the government requires.  Unless your company is able to dedicate
an employee to doing government contracting, it can be extremely time
consuming and frustrating to deal with government contracting on a
part time basis.  Many small businesses find that they don't have enough
time in their day to devote enough time to this activity to make it be as
profitable as it might be for them.


3.  What do I do when I'm having trouble finding the time to spend on looking
at bids?

There are two approachs that you can take at this point. First, you
could hire a full time employee to do that work for you.  Of course, you
would have the issues of having another person that you are paying full-
time along with benefits and the associated human resource  concerns
that occur.  You must also train that person to do all the tasks that you
want done.  Your second choice (the wiser choice, we believe) is to hire
a consultant who knows the business and what needs to be done in
order to get where you want to be. You can contract with him for just
the hours you need and you don't need to worry about benefits and any
training. He can begin to help you immediately.


4.   I want to start a new business.  I've heard that SCORE can help.  What do
     you think?

SCORE can offer counseling based on the experience of their
members.  Most of their counselors have had a number of years of
experience in their own companies and understand what is necessary to
run a business.   Many of their sessions are free, with a small cost
associated with any seminars that you may wish to take.  SCORE will not
want to become involved in your business. They offer counseling during
specific office hours during the work week, but can set up other
appointments if needed.  They can be a great initial help to people who
are thinking about or have just started a new small business.  SCORE
prefers that you write your own business plan, since you know what
you want your business to be.  They can help you make sure you have
covered all the topics you should have.


5.   I'm stuck in writing a business plan. Can you help me write it?

Yes, I can.  A Business Consultant will work directly with you ,
interview you, and help you develop the thoughts that you want in the
plan, and then write the words that express your desires. You obviously
then review and change or approve what has been developed.  This
gives you the freedom to focus on other parts of the plan and be more
effective.  In other words, the Consultant acts as another "you", making
you twice as efficient, allowing you, the entrepreneur and/or manager,
to more easily reach your business goals.


6.  What is LEAN and how can it help me?

Lean Manufacturing(and Lean Office) have developed over the last
60 years into  a set of philosphies and approaches to doing business
that helps eliminate the waste in the processes used to produce your
products or services. The original system used was the Toyota
Production System (TPS), which for years was the most effective and
highest quality system in the world.  Lean has taken all of the best parts
of that system and "americanized" it for use here.  It presents many
opportunities to improve your processing so that it can be very customer
oriented and very efficient for you to operate.  The various parts of Lean
include topics such as Value-Added Activities, Workplace Organization,
Value Stream Mapping, Cellular Flow,Standard Work, Error Prevention,
Quick Changeovers, and Continuous Improvement.  We can offer a
number of training and overview classes to help incorporate Lean
Thinking into your organization.


7. I've heard that consultants are expensive.  How much do you charge and
why is that a good deal?

Business Consultants do have an apparent high hourly cost
compared to the typical hourly wage rate.  Many consultants from other
parts of the country, or even downstate Michigan, will charge $300 an
hour (and up!) to come up and service this part of the country.  Since the
goal of Downey Consulting is to create jobs, we feel that the consulting
fee should be a much more reasonable rate in order to allow businesses
of all sizes and budgets to take advantage of what the Consultant can
do for them.  Our hourly rate will range between $60 and $90 per hour
depending on the tasks agreed upon.  We will agree on a plan of action,
document it, and agree on the number of hours that should be spent to
accomplish that goal.  We want to be very flexible and pro-active in order
to meet your needs.  Even at those rates, it will almost always  be
cheaper to hire a part-time Consultant than to hire that full-time
employee with their benefits, etc., etc. You will find that our rates for
conducting Training are much less expensive than other training
companies in the area, because we don't have the expensive overhead
of those others. Call us and find out the true cost of Training and
Consultation........

Downey Consulting
               Together, we can build your future