Contracting officer credits team for Army small business award

By Daniel P. Elkins, Mission and Installation Contracting Command Public Affairs OfficeJune 9, 2014

Contracting officer credits team for Army small business award
Anthony Sligar earned the Fiscal Year 2013 Army Part-Time Small Business Specialist Award for his efforts in supporting small businesses with Army contract opportunities. He is the chief of the Mission and Installation Contracting Command-Fort Drum C... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (June 6, 2014) -- The skill of juggling two jobs at once has proven quite successful for a contracting officer at Fort Drum, New York, who recently earned Army recognition for his contracting efforts with America's small businesses.

Anthony Sligar, the chief of the Mission and Installation Contracting Command-Fort Drum Construction and Supply Division, received the Fiscal Year 2013 Army Part-Time Small Business Specialist Award.

"I am honored that Fort Drum was recognized for its achievement in supporting the small business program," said Sligar, a full-time contracting officer who performs small business specialist duties on a part-time basis.

He is quick to credit the award to the efforts by all MICC civilian and uniformed contracting personnel there.

"Fort Drum employees work hard to support the small business program. It's a success due to a collaborative effort," he said. "I am very proud of all the contract specialists and contracting officers for their achievements."

The award recognizes Sligar's excellence during fiscal 2013 in providing small business support as well as marketing and implementation of program strategies that allowed MICC-Fort Drum to exceed its socio-economic goals that year.

Under the guidance and recommendations of Sligar, MICC-Fort Drum more than doubled its woman-owned small business goal of 25 percent by achieving 56.9 percent. The office also exceeded its historically underutilized business zone goal of 25 percent with 28.5 percent despite the loss of construction projects due to budgetary cuts and the census redistricting that negatively impacted previous HUBZone-qualified firms in the upper New York area.

"His sage advice increased opportunities for small businesses, enhanced market research efforts, stimulated competition and enlarged the percentage of new vendors doing business with the MICC and Army," said Lynette Ward, an assistant director for the MICC Office of Small Business Programs at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas. "This created a positive impact on our nation's economy and strengthened ties with the northern New York community."

Additionally, Sligar played an instrumental role in establishing numerous blanket purchase agreements for small and service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses covering organizational needs from boots and flooring to paint and electrical services.

"Anthony's analytical skills and pervasive oversight of the small business program enabled the MICC-Fort Drum office to exceed four of their five assigned goals in a year of sequestration, furloughs, budgetary reductions and uncertainties," said Mark Massie, the associate director of MICC Small Business Programs here.

During fiscal 2013, Sligar helped guide the MICC-Fort Drum team to more than $63 million in annual obligations, including more than $44 million to small businesses. Among his recommendations were small business contract set-asides of $8 million for asphalt and concrete, $5.9 million for ground ambulance services and $2.5 million for dumpster services. Sligar's small business advocacy and market research assistance also proved valuable in a $1.3 million requirement for propane delivery that was historically awarded to a large business but successfully set aside and competitively awarded to a small business.

Officials at the MICC Office of Small Business Programs said Fort Drum has some of the highest assigned small business goals in the command, with an overall 80-percent goal of total small business eligible dollars.

Accepting the award on behalf of Sligar was Nancy Small, director of the Army Materiel Command Office of Small Business Programs. Tracey Pinson, the director of the Army Small Business Programs, presented the award.

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