Doing Business with DOE

Complex Nature of DOE procurement

DOE has a unique history dating back to the Manhattan project during World War II when the U.S. was in a race to end the war through development of nuclear weapons.  Over the years, the Department and its predecessor agencies have evolved to meet current challenges and evolving missions.  The resultant organizational structure is the M&O Contractor model, where most DOE facilities are government-owned, but contractor-operated by the M&O/FMCs.  DOE obligates approximately 80% of its annual contract budget to these large business M&Os/FMCs.  These key features of DOE make it a unique and sometimes challenging procurement environment for small businesses looking to do work with the Department.  Just some of those complexities include:

• 2 Senior Procurement Executives
• 11 Heads of Contracting Activity
• 15 SBA Procurement Center Representatives
• 80+ Small Business Federal and M&O/FMC Program Managers (SBPMs)
• Multiple Federal and M&O/FMC Forecasts
• 22 Contracting Activities
• 36 Different Sites
• Multiple contracting sources through federal procurements and M&O/FMC subcontracts

As a result of the unique DOE M&O/FMC contract structure, SBA allows DOE to take credit for all M&O/FMC first tier subcontract awards in calculating the Department’s prime SB award total for the SBA scorecard.  DOE tracks all first-tier subcontract awards in the M&O/FMC Subcontract Reporting Capability (MOSRC) database. 

Small Business Challenges

In addition to the unique challenges of the DOE and NNSA M&O/FMC contractor model, there are some other unique challenges that small businesses face when trying to establish themselves as qualified service providers.  Some of those challenges include:

• DOE’s decentralized business model across 36 sites;
• Sometimes limited access to sites’ program managers and buyers (security, remote sites, etc.);
• Rigorous safety, physical security, and cybersecurity requirements;
• Highly complex and detailed technical requirements; and
• Total contract value often too high for small business engagement.

Yet despite these complexities, there are still ample opportunities for small businesses to compete and provide value-added services and support to DOE and NNSA through prime contract awards, M&O/FMC first tier subcontract awards (MOSRC), and other subcontract awards.

Small Business Points of Contact

Firms that are interested in exploring subcontracting opportunities with various DOE sites are encouraged to visit our Small Business Points of Contact page. It contains a link to our downloadable directory of our DOE and M&O/FMC Small Business Program Managers (SBPMs), who are our front-line resources to help you do business with DOE. 

In addition to DOE resources, the SBA’s Procurement Center Representatives (PCR) and the Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs) offer free resources to assist you in pursuing government contracts.

Submit a NOTICE OF ALLEGED UNDUE RESTRICTION

OSDBU advocates on your behalf and is available to assist any small business that believes a solicitation, request for proposal (RFP), or request for quotation (RFQ) may unduly restrict the ability of the small business to compete for an award. Learn how to Submit a Notice Of Alleged Undue Restriction and see how we can further help you. 

NAICS Codes and SAM

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Codes

The NAICS is the standard used by federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. Once the Census Bureau publishes the NAICS codes, the SBA applies small business size standards to the NAICS codes. The SBA’s Latest Table of Small Business Size Standards helps small businesses assess their business size.

DOE analyzes, develops, and publishes a list of the Department’s most utilized NAICS codes. The Table* below highlights the top ten NAICS codes most often used by DOE in FY2019.