Washington, D.C., Oct 7 -

Congressman Roscoe Bartlett encourages small business representatives to attend the eighth SMART PROC conference being held in conjunction with SMART – Strengthening the Mid-Atlantic Region for Tomorrow  - on Friday, October 22 in Frederick, Maryland from 8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. at the FSK Holiday Inn.   Congressman Roscoe Bartlett said, “Back by popular demand, SMART PROC 10 is FREE to attend. Come learn how to succeed in obtaining contracts with the federal government and to help the federal government acquire the latest innovations at the best value for taxpayers’ money.”  The event features presentations & workshops by Fort Detrick & other federal government procurement officers, prime contractors, vendors & networking opportunities.

Close to a thousand individuals attended SMART PROC 09.  There are 59 confirmed speakers and more than 36 exhibitors and sponsors for SMART PROC 10.  Registration is free and you are encouraged to register online to reserve your space at http://smart-proc.com. Space is limited.  Exhibit halls open at 7:00 am. Continental breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m.  Lunch is included.  Additional information is at the SMART PROC 10 website: http://smart-proc.com.  Congressman Bartlett’s website is www.bartlett.house.gov. 

Congressman Roscoe Bartlett said, “Close to a thousand people attended SMART PROC 09.  SMART PROC 10 is bigger and better.  It is designed to be useful to small businesses to learn how to win federal contracts. I have worked for eighteen years in Congress to increase opportunities for small businesses to successfully compete for federal contracts.  That’s because I understand that small businesses are the engine of America’s economy, producing most new jobs and innovations.  The federal government needs these innovations to obtain rapid improvements in America’s homeland security and new capabilities to win the war against us by terrorists, such as al Qaeda. SMART PROC helps small businesses, government, academic and non-profit organizations from Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey help our federal and state governments get the best value for our hard-earned tax dollars while strengthening our local and regional economies.  That is smart.” 

Congressman Bartlett previously organized nineteen procurement conferences for small businesses involving more than 3,000 businesses, including the first SMART PROC held in 2004 in Frederick. 

Among Confirmed Keynote Speakers at SMART PROC 10 are:

Honorable Congressman Roscoe G. Bartlett, 6th District, Maryland

MG James Gilman, Commanding General, U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command (USAMRMC); and Fort Detrick, MD.           

Rear Admiral Sean Crean, U.S. Navy Acquisition

Linda Oliver, SES, Acting Director, Department of Defense Office of Small Business Programs

Richard Hale, SES, DISA              

Gary Martin, SES, RDECOM

There are several new training sessions for SMART PROC 10.  There will be a NEW session focused on preparing small business for Insourcing and what it means to the future of acquisition; a NEW session on proposal writing and how the government evaluates proposals as well as a NEW mock Industry Day training of the Request for Proposal (RFP) process for upcoming bids and competitive teaming arrangements provided by USAMRAA.

BRAC & NIBC updates will be given during presentations and training sessions. BRAC is the Base Re-Alignment Commission.  Reorganizations under BRAC are affecting the missions, facilities and personnel at Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) and Fort Detrick. NIBC is the National Interagency Biodefense Campus for counter-terrorism research located at Fort Detrick.  NIBC is comprised of the Department of Homeland Security’s National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC/DHS), the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases Integrated Research Facility (NIAID/IRF), the United States Army Medical Research Institute for infectious diseases (USAMRIID/Army), the U.S. Department of Agriculture - Foreign Disease-Weed Science Research Unit (USDA - FDWSRU) and Environmental Microbiology (EM) missions of the Division of Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response (DBPR) of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).