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In
overall terms, HYJEK & FIX, INC. believes that the government
marketplace can best be visualized as a triangular relationship
involving the Product or Service, the Customer, and the Administration or Congress.
A Product or Service must be offered to the government that fits a stated or acknowledged need, operates as advertised, and incorporates quality with reliability.
Second, a Customer Agency or proponent must exist who supports the purchase or utilization of the client's product or service.
Third, the Administration and/or Congress must then provide the necessary funding and procurement structure for acquisition.
No program can survive without successfully incorporating at least two of these elements. To be fully successful, all three must be incorporated and operate in concert.
As a practical matter, more potential government customers exist than the federal budget will accomodate each year. Similarly, the vast majority of companies in the U.S. and overseas produce quality products and services whose procurement would benefit the federal government. It is the third leg of the triangle, the provision of necessary funding, that challenges most companies in their quest to sell to the government.
HYJEK & FIX, INC. knows how to make this federal procurement triangle work for your firm.
Specific areas in which HYJEK & FIX, INC. can provide government procurement assistance include:
Strategy Development: The firm works with its clients to fully understand who within the federal government would be helped by the acquisition of their product of service, and to orchestrate the development of a strategy that fully addresses the procurement triangle. A key element of this process is to determine the client's optimal objective, as well to develop appropriate fall back positions that meet the client's minimum essential requirements. Compromise is key in working with the Congress, and those who adopt an "all or nothing" position frequently are granted the latter. HYJEK & FIX, INC. develops a tailored strategy and message that will harmonize all interested parties into an effective bloc supporting a procurement.
Intelligence Gathering: The firm identifies key decision-makers in the department/agency, administration, and Congressional arenas for a given product or service as well as what it will take to gain their support for its procurement. Other elements of support for the include the provision of current information on the status of programs within the executive and legislative branches, as well as forecasts of upcoming requirements and critical data on budget and acquisition activities. This also includes 'opposition research' to anticipate the strengths and strategies of competitors to prepare appropriate responses to challenges which may arise and avoid unexpected pitfalls.
Shaping the Environment: Although they remain the "Holy Grail" of the federal procurement world, "sole source" contracts are extremely rare in today's environment. HYJEK & FIX, INC. can, however, help you work with the customer, the federal procurement community, and the Congress, to shape the environment within which a procurement will take place. While the ultimate procurement will be competitive, for example, the product specifications and/or the Congressional language providing the necessary funding can specify certain characteristics and establish their relative degree of importance in the evaluation process.
Teaming: Strategic partnering agreements are often key to a government sale, as they can enhance the viability of a good or service in the view of the procuring agency or department, as well as broaden the political base of support in favor of a product's procurement. The firm has been successful at finding partners who provide needed elements, from manufacturing capacity to agency confidence to political presence, to team with clients who would not otherwise be successful offerors.
Bid Preparation: HYJEK & FIX, INC. is very experienced at assisting companies respond to the requirements and procedures associated with government Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and Invitation for Bids (IFB), as well as obtaining answers to the questions that arise in these processes.
Dispute Resolution: During the course of a procurement, bidders or contractors may find themselves in disagreement with the procuring activity or agency. While it is imperative that companies attempt to resolve those concerns with the least amount of friction and at the lowest level possible, circumstances may arise which require elevation of an issue to an department/agency executive or Member of Congress. HYJEK & FIX, INC. is well-versed in how to assist clients in this delicate task while creating a minimum amount of disruption to the procurement process. In those instances where there simply is no other remedy, the firm's personnel have experience working with counsel in defending a contractor's rights in federal courts, the General Accounting Office, or administrative tribunals.
Liaison Activities: The firm can also provide effective liaison services with foreign embassies and the Departments of Commerce and State for clients with international business interests.
HYJEK & FIX, INC. looks forward to discussing with you your desires and plans to market your firm's goods and services to the federal government, as well as how it can assist you in achieving your government procurement goals.
The Case Studies outlined below will give you some insight into how HYJEK & FIX, INC. used the triangular relationship to effectively assist clients in the successful marketing of their goods and services to federal agencies.
CASE STUDIES
We are expert in matching a client’s technology, product, and capabilities with those in government who support its development and/or procurement, and in working with these elements to successfully obtain federal funding and Congressional support.
Real-time Influenza Test
In the fall of 2005, the potential for an Avian (H5N1) Influenza pandemic became a national concern. HYJEK & FIX, INC. was then working with a client in the molecular diagnostics business to provide additional funding to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to allow additional supplies of reagents to be purchased for the national Laboratory Response Network. A key component of the concern over an H5N1 pandemic was the inadequacy of diagnostic testing technology—the ‘time to result’ for avian flu tests exceeded the window of opportunity where the disease was treatable.
Our client had just brought to market a molecular diagnostic system that was both compact and could be run by technicians with minimal training. Highly accurate answers based on DNA analysis could be returned in an hour (versus at least 24 hours and up to 72 hours for traditional laboratory methods).
We worked extensively to make the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Congress aware of this cutting edge diagnostic technology, and outlined how an accurate real-time test (estimated to be developed and FDA-cleared in a year) to detect the Avian Influenza virus would address key pandemic-related testing issues.
Result:
The Fiscal Year 2006 Emergency Supplemental directed the CDC to develop such a real-time diagnostic capability to meet the potential threat posed by Avian Influenza. A solicitation for the “Development of New and Improved Diagnostic Test Product for Influenza Virus Testing at Point-of-Care” was issued by the CDC in May 2006; a $14 million contract to develop this test was competitively awarded to our client in December of 2006.
Flexible Microelectronics
From 1996-2006, we assisted a consortium dedicated to developing the infrastructure and supply chain to help move displays from cathode ray tubes (CRTs) to flat panels and then to flexible displays. The client’s effort was supported by the Department of Defense (DOD) because of the weight savings, increased ruggedness, lower power consumption, and broader ranges of uses and applications inherent in the move to flat panels and then to flexible microelectronic substrates. DOD was; however, unable to fund this effort within the President’s Budget Request (PBR).
Working in close partnership with our client, H&F planned, coordinated, and executed a comprehensive Congressional and federal departmental/agency program. Based on the principle of matching funds being supplied by private industry, a successful and sustained coalition of Congressional support was established to fund this research and development effort.
Result:
$77.8 million in DOD funding was provided more than ten years by the Congress to support this display infrastructure and supply chain development, and the program became part of DOD’s formal budget in Fiscal Year 2007. Other significant program successes were the establishment of the Flexible Display Center (FDC) at Arizona State University by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the creation of the Center for Microelectronics Manufacturing (CAMM) at Binghamton University.
Ejection/Crash-worthy Seats
In 1998, an overseas manufacturer of ejection and crash-worthy seating faced a high-stakes future in the upcoming Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program in which they faced stiff industrial and political opposition. While they enjoyed an 80 percent share of the US Navy ejection seat market, they provided no ejection seats to the Air Force which was the largest single customer of the JSF. The Company also had interested, but a zero percent share of the US military’s crashworthy-seat market.
The company’s future health depended on being selected to provide the JSF ejection seat, as well as make significant entries into the Air Force and crash-worthy seat arenas. HYJEK & FIX, INC. was hired to help them be successful in addressing these challenges.
Result:
The company was selected in August 2000 to be the sole provider of ejection seats for the JSF program. In the crashworthy seat arena, the Company is engaged in providing volume production seats for the CH-47, UH-60, SH-60 and CH-53 helicopters for the Army, Navy, USMC and Coast Guard. The team has also been successful in achieving $87 million in additional funding over the last ten years to address ejection seat and crash-worthy seating needs, and a facility employing 120 people has been established in Pennsylvania.
Since they were selected as the escape system for the JSF, the company has retained their basic monopoly of the US Navy/Marine Corps market and captured all the USAF trainer aircraft ejection seat procurements; when combined with the JSF program, this provides them with a current USAF market share of over 35 percent, enroute to over 90 percent by 2018.
M777 Lightweight 155mm Howitzer
In 1997, a Defense Department source selection team chose a British company’s design to become the new lightweight155mm howitzer for the Army and Marine Corps. This decision was actively opposed; however, by the Army’s in-house artillery production facility, the Rock Island Arsenal, with its very strong Congressional Delegation which included the Speaker of the House.
HYJEK & FIX, INC. was hired by the company to address this opposition, as well as to design and implement a US production plan that would result in a base of support for the program in the US Congress.
Result:
The Company’s design for the M777 155mm howitzer is in production today with over 1000 howitzers being in service with the Army and the Marine Corps. The political – industrial strategy results in 84 percent US content of the system, and the M777 industrial team that includes the Army’s Picatinny and Watervliet Arsenals, as well as 18 vendors in 12 states. Over $90 million has been provided through Congressional plus-ups to accelerate the program by two years over the baseline plan. The program’s value to the Company is in excess of $1 billion.
Dedicated Breast MRI
In early 2008, we were approached by a firm producing a dedicated breast MRI system (in fact, the only FDA-cleared MRI system specifically designed for breast imaging). This technology provides benefits unavailable on whole body MRI systems, such as a three-dimensional image of both breasts, including the maxilla and chest wall.
The leadership of the Comprehensive Breast Center (CBC) at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center had indicated to them that scheduling and priority-of-use conflicts had established a new requirement for additional MRI capacity; the state-of-the-art performance of the Dedicated Breast MRI System would be an asset to the Center. Despite the Center’s need for the capability and the benefit to its patients, however, standard Army budget and contracting procedures would not allow this requirement to be met in a timely manner.
Working with our client, H&F created a coalition in the House and Senate of the firm’s Congressional delegation, Members with a history of supporting breast cancer detection/treatment funding for DOD and Walter Reed, and Members representing facilities which conducted joint breast cancer treatment and research programs with the Comprehensive Breast Center.
Result:
$1.6 million was identified within the Fiscal Year 2009 Department of Defense Appropriations (P.L. 110-329) to provide a Dedicated Breast MRI System for the Comprehensive Breast Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center; a contract to deliver and install the system at the Medical Center has been signed.
9mm Personal Defense Weapon
In 1985, an Italian company was selected to provide the new Personal Defense Weapon for the Department of Defense, replacing the WWII-vintage .45 caliber pistol. HYJEK & FIX, INC. was hired by the company to help it address protests by the three losing competitors, as well as to meet a contract requirement by establishing a US production base for the new M9 pistol.
The original competitive award to our client was successfully defended, a production facility in Maryland was established, and multi-year legislative authority to procure the weapon from H&F’s client was requested from, and granted by the Congress.
Result:
The M9 is the standard Personal Defense Weapon in DOD today. The company produced over 450,000 of the original M9 pistol, and, through Congressional direction and funding, the M9 was also made the standard personal defense weapon for the Army National Guard. In 2009, the company received a contract for $220 million to replace the original M9 in service with an improved M9A1 pistol.
