Oklahoma State University ASSET program serves Oklahoma companies and Federal Government
Friday, February 24, 2012
By Aubrey Raupe
The Oklahoma State University Enterprise Center, LLC’s Aging Systems Sustainment and Enabling Technologies program has helped more than 240 companies become qualified to bid on government contracts through the U.S. Department of Defense.
Formerly known as Computer Assisted Technology Transfer established in 1994, the OSU Enterprise Center, LLC became the prime contractor for the ASSET program in 2009 and continues to serve small engineering companies in Oklahoma and help them in their efforts to expand the manufacturing base and provide solutions to problem parts on legacy systems. The program has been so successful that it has now been expanded nationwide.
The OSU Enterprise Center and the ASSET program have been awarded more than $5.4 million through two Defense Logistics Agency contracts. The first contract was awarded to the program in March 2009, and a second contract was awarded to continue the program in Oct. 2011.
Oklahoma companies and the Federal Government both benefit from the work done by the ASSET program. Reverse engineering military weapons systems through partnerships initiated by the ASSET program have reduced government costs by 50 to 60 percent at times.
As a result of working with the ASSET program, many Oklahoma companies have received grants from the government to reverse engineer older technology or hard-to-find parts. One such company is Maverick Technologies, LLC. Maverick Technologies is an electronic design and manufacturing company specifically focused in the electronics field. The relationship between Maverick Technologies and the ASSET program began in 2004 and the program has helped Maverick Technologies secure a government contract in the electronics sector.
Bill Bennett, manager of Maverick Technologies LLC, said the benefits of the partnership with the ASSET program are invaluable.
“OSU’s involvement in this area is opening up and allowing businesses in the Oklahoma area to have that same type of opportunity, which gives those businesses that leg up that they normally wouldn’t have,” Bennett said. “It allows additional technical growth. It allows business ventures to do better in the government sustainment role.”
The benefit for small Oklahoma companies and the state of Oklahoma is that 90 percent of the government contracting stays in Oklahoma. In turn, the program has increased competition in the government contract bidding process and has opened the process up to many companies who otherwise would not have the opportunity to receive government contracts.
“The ASSET program allows small companies in Oklahoma to participate in engineering and prototype manufacturing with government products that they normally would not have the opportunity to do,” Bennett said. “A lot of times, those projects go to larger companies or companies that have a history of doing that type of work.”
The ASSET program is sponsored by the Logistics Research and Development Program at the Headquarters of the Defense Logistics Agency, Fort Belvoir, VA.
For more information about OSU’s ASSET program or to become a member of the ASSET program, visit www.asset.okstate.edu or call (405) 744-2325.