JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (May 13, 2025) –The Mission and Installation Contracting Command hosted its fifth-annual virtual Advanced Planning Briefing for Industry from May 5-8 to inform small businesses of forecasted Army contracting opportunities.
Over 1,600 small business stakeholders registered for the 2025 APBI for the opportunity to learn detailed requirements for Army contracting operations through fiscal year 2028 provided by over 70 contracting officials from most of MICC’s 30 office locations across the continental United States. Over the course of four days, the contracting command shared virtual presentations with previews of several dozen upcoming procurement opportunities, details and tips on MICC’s planning processes, and other insights expected to drive future initiatives in Army contracting. Attendees also learned about the MICC, its unit command structure, and contact information for each of the two MICC contracting support brigades, two field directorate offices, and dozens of contracting offices.
Clay Cole has served as the MICC deputy to the MICC commanding general since 2016 and says the command has met its small business goals for as far back as he can recall. He was the catalyst behind centralizing dozens of industry briefs into one consolidated, annual and virtual event hosted by the command’s Office of Small Business Programs through MS Teams.
“This is the fifth year that we have done this,” Cole said. He explained that the MICC previously conducted as many as 20-30 decentralized, mainly in-person events throughout the year; however, the senior leader directed planners at the time to develop a centralized virtual method to deliver contracting forecasts while mitigating safety concerns due to COVID-19.
“It has been highly successful, a lot more cost-effective, more efficient and has allowed greater participation, so we have stayed with this. We still appreciate your feedback when this is over on what format you prefer, as we are always trying to refine the process.”
Cole also welcomed the participants and thanked them for their willingness to tune in to discover how they may become active participants in future projects where their industry expertise will play a critical role in meeting Army warfighter requirements.
“The Mission and Installation Command leads the Army Contracting Command and the Army Materiel Command in the number of small business operations,” Cole told attendees. “The very nature of what we do is small-business-centric. The fact that we support installations scattered across the continental United States and the nature of the work that goes on there is inherently small business operations—it doesn’t mean that they are all small contracts; it means they are well-suited to small businesses.”
In fiscal year 2024 MICC achieved all of its small business goals set by the Army Contracting Command for the tenth year in a row; a goal that is nearly double the Department of Defense’s small business goal. MICC awarded more than 22,000 contract actions valued at nearly $5.5 billion across the Army, including $3 billion to American small businesses. Shouldering the responsibility to execute nearly 30% of the total Army small business expenditures in FY24, MICC’s top three categories in the North American Industry Classification System were construction at $590 million, facilities support at $434 million and advertising agencies at $399 million. Attendees during the 2025 APBI were briefed on a wide variety of projected contracts, from chaplain, photography, and information technology services to a broad range of installation and facilities maintenance, repair and alteration projects.
MICC’s OSBP Director, Luis Trinidad, facilitated the event, which included questions and answers between official briefings.
“Your participation speaks volumes of your dedication to the United States Army, its Soldiers and its mission,” Trinidad told attendees.
“This event is more than just a briefing; it is an opportunity to connect directly with those shaping the future of the Army. This is a forum for questions and collaboration. We encourage you to ask questions in the chat and help us explore potential areas for collaboration.”
Throughout the event, Trinidad also advertised a link for attendees to take a short survey about the format of the event, the quality and amount of information provided and anything else that may help his team refine future APBI events.
“Your feedback is important to us and will be used to shape future events,” Trinidad said. He said that his team has seen an increase in the quality of contract bids as the competition for contract increases. “Maintaining transparency, increasing competition and increasing the Defense Industrial Base will remain MICC priorities for the foreseeable future.”
Small business representatives unable to register for the 2025 APBI and participate in the discussion in real time are able to review the PowerPoint slides on SAM.gov and watch daily recordings on MICC YouTube:
• APBI Day 1, May 5, 2025: video
• APBI Day 2, May 6, 2025: video
• APBI Day 3, May 7, 2025: video
• APBI Day 4, May 8, 2025: video
Cole concluded his remarks, “I am very proud of the fact that my staff and my subordinate leaders actively pursue and engage with small businesses. I am very much appreciative of small businesses that strive to provide support to the greatest Army on this planet in the defense of this country.”
The selected requirements briefed during the 2025 APBI were emailed to event registrants following the event. Slide presentations and video recordings from the event are additionally available on https://www.army.mil/micc#org-small-business. A full 3-year detailed acquisition forecast will also be posted to SAM.gov approximately 30 days after the event.
About the MICC
Headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the Mission and Installation Contracting Command consists of about 1,500 military and civilian members who are responsible for contracting goods and services in support of Soldiers as well as readying trained contracting units for the operating force and contingency environment when called upon. As part of its mission, MICC contracts are vital in feeding more than 200,000 Soldiers every day, providing many daily base operations support services at installations, facilitating training in the preparation of more than 100,000 conventional force members annually, training more than 500,000 students each year, and maintaining more than 14.4 million acres of land and 170,000 structures.
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