ND APEX Accelerator

Since 1895, the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) has supported service members and their families by providing tax-free merchandise and essential services at military installations around the world. Today, the Exchange is the Department of Defense’s largest retailer. The Exchange operates more than 12,000 facilities worldwide, including retail stores, food operations, catalogs, and […]

Prime contractors in federal contracting are responsible for assigning the appropriate NAICS code to each subcontract they issue—contrary to a common misconception that the NAICS code from the prime contract automatically flows down. For large businesses, this responsibility is explicitly required under FAR 52.219-9 and SBA regulations, which mandate selecting the NAICS code that best […]

If you’re exploring ways to sell to the federal government, you’ve likely come across the GSA Schedule. It’s one of the more well-known entry points into federal contracting, but it’s often misunderstood. At its core, the GSA Schedule, also called the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS), is a long-term contract that allows approved businesses to sell […]

If you are a small business owner looking to grow beyond your current market, working with the federal government might be one of the most powerful opportunities available—and the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) may be a great place to start. With billions invested annually in infrastructure, transit, aviation, and logistics, USDOT contracts support a […]

Recent GAO bid protest decisions make one thing clear: strict compliance with proposal formatting instructions is not optional. Even minor deviations—such as using an unapproved font, exceeding page limits, adding an extra cover page, including prohibited text in a logo, or submitting pricing in the wrong format—can result in outright exclusion from the competition, regardless […]

Executive branch agencies and higher education institutions use the State Bidders List when issuing solicitations for goods and services. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) State Procurement Office invites you to register as a bidder in NDBuys to receive notifications of State of North Dakota government bidding opportunities. NDBuys is the state’s new procurement […]

Federal government contractors–and especially small businesses–often find themselves competing under solicitations subject to the Buy American Act (BAA). While the BAA’s name may sound like a mandate to purchase only American-made products, the BAA is actually a domestic preference statute that can give a leg up to contractors providing domestic products, but does not prohibit […]

Doing business with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) offers significant opportunities to most any business, as it is the federal government’s largest engineering and construction organization. While the USACE has in-house engineering capabilities, most of its projects are executed by small and large business construction contractors through a competitive bidding process. Businesses must […]

Recently, the U.S. Small Business Administration made headlines by announcing that it was investigating an 8(a) Program contractor for potentially violating the limitations on subcontracting imposed by the Federal Acquisition Regulation and the SBA’s regulations. The SBA’s investigation serves as a strong reminder that small business prime contractors must strictly follow subcontracting limits and fully […]

Vanna Vans had already established itself as a company willing to push boundaries when its team began looking toward government and tribal contracting. As they explored this new market, they saw how complex federal procurement can feel for businesses offering specialized products. Their customizable mobile units do not fit neatly into standard categories, which made […]