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Every pricing effort is different so there is no way I can provide a “How To Guide” and it apply to every situation. So this is a very generic description. Whether you’re pricing a product or a service there are cost involved that must be covered within your total price. Some of the common cost include:

• Material Cost
• Labor Rates
• Mil-Std Testing/Inspection Requirements and Certifications
• Mil-Std Packing, Shipping and Insurance Requirements
• Travel Cost (this is usually a separate estimate as travel is cost reimbursable)
• Other Direct Costs (ODC)
• General & Administrative (G&A)
• Overhead (OH)
• Warranty Costs
• Escalation Rates for Multi-Year Contracts
• Security Requirements (Cyber and Physical)
• Risk
• Margin (Profit)

If you leave something out of your pricing or underestimate the cost of something is can be very difficult to get the Government to provide additional funding. The days of “low bidding” and asking for additional funding later are gone. That’s not to say it never happens, but not often. You should identify all your requirements and price them separately. The “roll-up” will be your total price.

I attended the AUSA Global Forces Conference in Huntsville AL last week. This is a medium sized conference targeting the Army and companies that support the Army. There was a lot of new technology there. I saw more drone companies there this year than I have in the past. That market is growing incredibly fast. Of course Cyber security was a big topic there. Several new companies were displaying capabilities in adapting Artificial Intelligence to Army logistics and data management needs. I haven’t seen that so prevalent before. These conferences can be expensive to display at for a new start up company, but they are a good way to connect with similar companies and find out what your competitors are up to. Even if you just walk the show they can be worthwhile.

I’m hoping everyone can help me grow this site into something useful for those interested in discussing the Government/Defense Contracting Industry. I have spent a lot of time as a consultant for defense companies and wanted to share some of my experiences. Also it provides a place where people can ask questions. Currently it requires you set up an account to access the discussion area. This is only an attempt to limit access to those who have an actual interest in discuss contracting concerns. In the future I hope to start “Matchmaking” companies who can team together to pursue larger contract opportunities. Right now I’m not aware of any other sites attempting to do that. I don’t get paid to run this site and its all funded out of my own pocket. Maybe in the future I’ll have to charge a small fee to cover costs, but right now there is no charge.

The next update to the site will be adding a page where I can upload documents I have written over the years I used to train small companies looking to get started in Defense Contracting. They cover various topics to include, Getting Started, Pricing, PWin, The Art of Business Development and others. I hope some of you may find them useful. Keep an eye out for the update.

I started this website to share information and my experiences as a Capture Manager and Proposal Manager in the Defense Industry. I also hope to share some friendly discussion related to Capture and Proposal Management with others interested in the industry.