Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) at the Savannah River Site (SRS) has subcontracted over $1.26 billion to small businesses over the last five years, averaging $253 million per year, exceeding their small business goals by an average of 33%. A significant factor contributing to this success is SRNS’s emphasis on building strong relationships with the owners of these small businesses and finding a variety of methods to regularly and optimally communicate with them.

This approach also helps ensure these same people fully comprehend the expectations and requirements found at SRS. In addition to regular interpersonal communications with existing and potential small businesses, SRNS sponsors and conducts a series of events each year for the benefit of those small businesses who provide an extensive array of goods and services. The list of events includes conferences, forums, ‘Opportunity Days,’ business builders, meetings and a Mentor-Protégé program. SRNS recently partnered with the Energy, Technology, and Environmental Business Association (ETEBA) who hosted the annual 2022 Savannah River Federal Business Opportunities Forum.

The forum focused on upcoming business opportunities with government agencies and prime contractors in the energy, environmental and defense markets. A Federal Business Opportunities Forum sponsored by ETEBA specifically for small businesses within the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) was recently held. Organizations participating in the event included SRS and its prime contractors, plus the U.S. Army’s Fort Gordon (Augusta, Georgia) and the Federal Government’s General Services Administration. The event also featured insight into much of the cyber security work being performed in throughout the CSRA. A major component of the Forum was the addition of a uniquely special discussion panel specifically dedicated to the production opportunities found across the 310-square-mile Savannah River Site related to manufacturing plutonium pits for the United States nuclear deterrent.

“Our ability to perform our missions is hinged upon the success of our small business community. Partners like ETEBA, provide access to well established businesses who clearly understand what we do and the importance of performance,” said Dennis Carr, Executive Vice President and National Nuclear Security Administration Chief Operations Officer. “SRNS will continue to support these events because they bring tremendous value to the Site.”