Naval Ship Systems Engineering Station (NAVSSES) employee Brett Franks, Machinery Alteration (MACHALT) Program manager, was named the winner of the Department of the Navy Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) Oreta B. Stinson Business Advocate Award Aug. 14.

Franks earned the award for his work in developing a strategy to utilize small businesses including 8 (a) Business Development (BD) firms, which are small businesses owned by women, minorities, or people with disabilities, to accomplish the more than $50 million of annual fleet support work done through the MACHALT Program.

"A lot of the machinery alterations we need to do on ships can be done by small businesses," said Franks. "So, why not mentor them in working with the Navy and help them build their business. Often small businesses have fresh ideas on how to do things. It also builds a larger workforce available for us to pull from. It creates more competition and helps keep the Navy's costs down."

Franks efforts helped five small businesses to grow and become able to compete for larger Navy contracts. One such business was Advanced Integrated Technologies (AIT) - a service disabled veteran-owned small business based in Norfolk, Virginia.

"The goal was to take AIT from a company of less than a dozen employees to the point where they were confident and experienced enough to support shipboard hull, mechanical and electrical alteration installations on their own," said Franks. "While the goal was to double the size of their business by the end of the three year program, AIT grew by almost 150 percent only half way through."

Franks uses various techniques including industry days and one-on-one consultation, as well as the Mentor-Protege Program to increase small business utilization. His work often leads small businesses to grow and win follow-on contracts.

Franks said that it is becoming more difficult to find businesses to provide qualified pipefitter and welders to do work. He said it is a shrinking industry because it is not easy work.

"If we get a chance to help a small business with these services grow so they can hire on more qualified workers in these areas, they benefit, as well as the Navy," said Franks. "The Navy still needs people who can hammer and grind."

Since 2007, when Franks began the small business strategy at NAVSSES with the help of Irene Katacinski, deputy for Small Business Programs at NAVSSES, the number of machinery alterations completed jumped from 127 to 240 in 2014. NAVSSES has consistently awarded more than 40 percent of their obligated dollars to small businesses through this partnership.

"Irene has been an instrumental part of the program," said Franks. "We are currently working to establish another mentor-protege agreement with a large business and a small business located in Suffolk, Virginia."

The OSBP Oreta B. Stinson Business Advocate Award is named after the Office of the Secretary of the Navy's former deputy director for Small Business Programs who passed away in June 2012.

Franks also earned the Department of Defense Office of Small Business Programs Nunn-Perry Award in 2014 for his work on building mentor-protege relationships. He will receive the OSBP Oreta B. Stinson Business Advocate Award on Nov. 13 during a ceremony at the Pentagon.

The Ship Systems Engineering Station, Philadelphia is a major component of Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division. It is the Navy's principal test and evaluation station and in-service engineering agent for all hull, mechanical and electrical ship systems and equipment and has the capability to test and engineer the full range of shipboard systems and equipment from full-scale propulsion systems to digital controls and electric power systems.

For more news from Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock, visit www.navy.mil/.