By just looking at the annual tax bill, one can conclude that there is a lot of potential business to be won in government contracts. In 2017 for example, government buyers spent nearly $1.2 billion through the GSA Security Schedule. The recurrent expenditure of motor vehicles and automotive services through the same program is more than $1 billion. One of the biggest spenders when it comes to government spending is the department of defense. This is part of the reason why there is a sharp increase in the number of defense contractors. Government contracts in the military could range from c4isr systems to fore and emergency services equipment. Supply of organizational clothing and individual equipment is also a popular venture when selling to the government. However, it is important to understand that contracts dealing with organizational clothing and individual equipment as well as those touching on the supply of firefighting equipment are highly sensitive-in fact; any contract to the military is highly sensitive.


For businesses, there are a number of ways of closing a deal with the government and specifically on security matters. Offers on provision of weapon components maybe hard to come by but from time to time, businesses are asked to send proposals on provision of organizational clothing and individual equipment. Once this is done, the evaluation committees will always look for high performers and professionalism. It is not just companies with rich histories that are more likely to be awarded defense contracts for the provision of organizational clothing and individual equipment. What distinguishes businesses is the ability to understand the sectors that they are providing to. This requires having tailored logistics support program that can guarantee swift and efficient delivery of goods and services. More importantly, companies should use compliance to their advantage. Organizational clothing and individual equipment are not just like any other products. Some of these items may include personal protective equipment that is used for specialized operations support.


The bidding process for government contracts is special. This means that as a contractor, you need to understand the rules and regulations as well as the requirements that pre-qualify you as a successful bidder. Under any circumstances, the main objective should be the long-game. Due to the restrictions that accompany government contracts and particularly those touching on the delivery of organizational clothing and individual equipment, customer insight is not a major issue as the customer is only one-the government. With this in mind, try and leverage your time by establishing competitive advantage over other government contractors. Bear in mind that supply of some goods such as tactical equipment requires a huge budget. With various financing options available, there is still a possibility of fairly new entities successfully supplying these products. Financial capability is probably the biggest challenge that defense contractors have but it is not the only one. Provision of security products and services requires effective operational solutions by the contracted party. This can only be achieved through effective management practices, strict adherence to contractual procedures and full disclosure of company information.