HOUSTON, May 2, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Port of Houston Authority (PHA) celebrated the third anniversary of the Small Business Development Program (SBDP) with a reception on Thursday, April 28. The celebration at the Grand Room Downtown was attended by more than 500 invited guests including participating SBDP vendors, representatives of the City of Houston, METRO, Houston Minority Business Council, U.S. Small Business Administration and the Women's Business Enterprise Alliance as well as several political and civic leaders. KRIV Fox 26 News Anchor Jose Grinan served as Master of Ceremonies.
Photos accompanying this release are available at: http://media.primezone.com/poha/pages/business.html
The PHA saluted Zachry Construction Corporation as the Small Business Advocate of the Year. During 2004, the PHA commission awarded the $37.9 million Bayport container yard construction contract to Zachry largely because of the company's high commitment to small business participation. Zachry's plan commits $31.4 million (83 percent) to small business sub-contractors. Earlier in the year, Zachry also had received the PHA commission's top ranking for an estimated $62.5 million contract for dredging and wharf construction at Bayport. In that project, Zachry's small business commitment totaled $24.6 million (39 percent).
Paradigm Consultants, Inc. was recognized as the PHA's Small Business of the Year. In business for ten years, Paradigm is a geotechnical, environmental and construction materials engineering and testing services firm. In 2004, the PHA commission awarded a $1.2 million contract to Paradigm for concrete testing services for the first phase of the Bayport project.
Two PHA employees -- Bayport project manager Mark Vincent and risk manager Larry Townsend -- were each presented awards honoring them as PHA's Procurement Champions of the Year.
"It doesn't take prodding, threatening or cajoling to make this program work," stated PHA Executive Director Tom Kornegay. "This program has succeeded because it has attracted contractors who believe that working with small businesses benefits all of us. The port delivers the goods and small businesses are a very large part of why the Port of Houston Authority does its job so well."
The reception also included a ceremony recognizing the Spring 2005 class of vendors to complete Port University, an initiative started in 2004 to mentor and facilitate small business participation in the PHA's contracting and procurement processes through courses taught by PHA staff members from the engineering, environmental, operations, trade development, purchasing, risk management and legal departments. The Spring 2005 class included:
-- Debra Bann, Digi Marketing -- Geoff Basford, 4b Technology Group -- Lisa Bell, A&B Labs -- Godwin Biezugbe, AES&T Environmental Services -- Tracey Bocksnick, Paradigm Consultants -- Janice Caddie, KC Contractors -- Sri Charlu, S.R.I. Imports -- Ebow Coleman, C3S, Inc. -- Jim Cooper, Bishops Office Needs -- Dee Dee Durisek, Nick's Fastener & Industrial Supply -- Vincent Jacob, Isani Consultants -- Veronica Jeans, The Augusta Group -- Connie Kelley, Adams Gardner Executive Search -- Larry Mayhew, Integrated Protection Solutions -- Nolan Neathery, Nolan and Associates -- Michael Sharp, Sharp Security Systems -- Pamela Smith, Tolunay-Wong Engineers -- Art Thompson, Sr., Thompson's Construction & Structural Designs -- Scottie Trevino, United Engineers, Inc.
About SBDP
The SBDP is designed to help PHA contractors make good faith efforts to include small business participation in eligible contracts. Most PHA contracts valued at more than $25,000 are considered SBDP eligible. The exceptions include contracts for sole-source items, federally funded contracts, contracts with other governmental entities and certain contracts that are otherwise prohibited by applicable law from inclusion in the SBDP. Professional service contracts are SBDP eligible contracts to the extent permitted by law and/or PHA commission policies.
As a race- and gender-neutral program, the SBDP is open to all certified small businesses located in greater Houston and the surrounding areas including Harris, Galveston, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Waller, Liberty, Chambers and Brazoria counties. An individual small business owner's personal net worth must not exceed $750,000 (excluding the business and homestead). Eligible small businesses must complete and submit an application and vendor information form. The application must be accompanied by a copy of the firm's small business certification. A company can be certified as a small business by the City of Houston, Houston Minority Business Council, METRO, U.S. Small Business Administration 8(a) and the Women's Business Enterprise Alliance. Upon PHA staff review and approval of a company's application and small business certification, a company becomes eligible to participate in the program.
SBDP Year-end 2004 Results
-- PHA committed a total of $63.9 million (51 percent) to small
business prime contractors and sub-contractors. Of that amount,
$5.7 million (5 percent) went directly to small business prime
contractors.
-- Small businesses received $2.3 million (39 percent) of all
informal purchase orders by the PHA. (Note: a formal purchase
order is over $25,000; an informal purchase order is under
$25,000.)
-- A total of 852 vendors became registered participants in the
SBDP.
SBDP First Quarter 2005 Results
-- PHA committed $1.7 million (34 percent) of its eligible
contracts to small business prime and sub-contractors. Of
that total, $653,662 (13 percent) was awarded to small
business prime contractors.
-- A total of $709,079 (46 percent) of all PHA informal purchase
orders (under $25,000) were issued to small businesses during
the quarter.
-- A total of 67 new vendors became registered participants in the
SBDP, bringing the total to 919. Approval remains pending for
another 271 vendors.
"When this program was launched, the port commission set an annual goal of 35 percent small business participation. It is a promise that we intend to keep," said PHA Chairman Jim Edmonds. "You owe it to yourselves and your small businesses to continue bidding for work from the port authority. We need your help to get our jobs done. As small business owners and employees, you are a vital link in the port's supply chain."
Earlier this year, PHA Commissioner Steve Phelps was appointed chairman of the PHA's Small Business Task Force, succeeding PHA Vice Chairman Kase Lawal and PHA Commissioner Cheryl Thompson-Draper who had steered the SBDP through its initial implementation and development. "I intend to build on their leadership and help this program achieve even greater success," Commissioner Phelps said. "From the very beginning, we knew that the program could succeed only if small firms are aware of business opportunities at the port authority. Getting our message across throughout the community is essential."
Upcoming SBDP Events
The SBDP hosts monthly networking forums called "Business Opportunities at the Port." The upcoming forums are scheduled for May 4, June 1, July 6, August 3, August 31, October 5, October 26, and December 7. Each forum begins at 4:30 p.m. in the lunch room of the PHA Executive Office Building, located at 111 East Loop North (exit 29 off Loop 610 near the Houston Ship Channel Bridge). Various PHA staff members will be available at the forums to answer questions about current proposals and refreshments will be served.
The SBDP also provides small business technical assistance and outreach by encouraging the formation of joint ventures, alliances and mentoring relationships among small and large businesses and individuals; organizing training workshops and conferences led by advisors with special expertise in the requirements for successfully completing small business bids and proposals at the port; participating in community-based events for small, minority- and women-owned businesses; using targeted media to advertise notifications of bid and proposal opportunities at the port; requiring all prospective port contractors to submit written assurances of meeting small business participation goals; and facilitating ways to ease the costs associated with obtaining insurance and surety bonds needed to qualify for contract bids.
PHOTO CAPTIONS:
1. Commissioner Steve Phelps and Commissioner Janiece Longoria (back
row, left) and Chairman Jim Edmonds and Executive Director Tom
Kornegay (back row, right) with the Spring 2005 graduates of Port
University.
2. (l. to r.) Risk Manager Larry Townsend, Commissioner Steve
Phelps, Commissioner Janiece Longoria, Chairman Jim Edmonds
and Bayport Project Manager Mark Vincent.
The Port of Houston Authority logo can be found at: http://media.primezone.com/prs/single/?pkgid=720
The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, more than 6,600 vessels call at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in overall total tonnage, and sixth largest in the world. The Port Authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee "C" futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange. For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com
The PHA has a website photo gallery featuring images of port commissioners, executives, facilities, business activities, community outreach events and activities, environmental projects, and logos. Users can download the gallery's high-resolution images at no charge after registering as a member. The port website's simple online member registration procedure requires users to submit their name, company, telephone number, and e-mail address, personal password, and description of the intended use of the downloaded images.
To access the photo gallery, please visit http://www.portofhouston.com/publicrelations/publicrelations.html and click the link for PHA Photo Gallery.
