5 Ways to Do Business with NASA

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There are enormous opportunities for small companies to engage in business with NASA.  Just consider the following:  There are  10 major NASA field centers and 7 facilities located across the United States. At these NASA locations, millions of dollars in government contracts are awarded on a frequent basis to small businesses.  The projected FY 2022 NASA budget is nearly $24 billion. In recent years, NASA has awarded $2.8 billion of its federal contracts to small businesses!  

NASA’s annual budget pays for the development and purchase of major space systems as well as for the purchase of thousands of different types of products, supplies, equipment, replacement parts, materials, construction, and services. There are 5 ways for small businesses to engage in business with NASA. 

1. For small purchases under $3,000 NASA typically uses Micro-Purchase procedures. 
2. For procurements priced over $3,000 but under $150,000 dollars, Simplified Acquisition Procedures are normally used.    
3. For larger procurements, Competitive Contracting Procedures are used.  (NOTE: The two main procedures included in this method of government procurement include: a] Sealed Bidding Procedures and b] Contracting by Negotiation, aka Proposal Evaluations.)    
4. An often overlooked way to do business with NASA is by participating as a supplier or vendor on a GSA Schedule.  
5. An excellent way to get started and gain experience with defense contracting is by serving as a subcontractor / supply vendor to a prime NASA contractor.