FAIRMONT — Through federal government contracting, many small companies in the area are experiencing noticeable business growth.

In business since 1985, T3 Corp. is a certified federal government contractor that mainly focuses on Department of Defense work, but it has also done projects with civilian agencies. Headquartered in downtown Fairmont, the company does work with Internet or information-based security and services, usually multi-year extended services with integration.

In the early ’80s, T3 president and CEO David Pujals worked as a federal employee for an international service-type organization. He noticed “some niches that weren’t being handled very well” and formed T3 Corp. as a result. Pujals said the company “was a liaison between commercial companies who had solutions” and the federal government that needed answers.

T3 has a strong commercial and federal background. T3 is involved with network intrusion detection and secure enterprise work for commercial ventures, Pujals said.

Today, the company concentrates on hardware, software and services solutions. T3 was recently awarded a $2.7 million Navy contract.

“All of our work is classified,” Pujals said.

In addition to Fairmont, T3 also has offices in Manassas, Va., Centreville, Va., Nokesville, Va., Frederick, Md., and Suitland, Md.

T3 participated in the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program. The company is in the SBA HUBZone (Historically Underutilized Business Zone) program and is certified as a Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB).

As business development specialist for the SBA’s West Virginia District Office in Clarksburg, Melissa Loder manages the certification programs for the SBA. She said the 8(a) Business Development Program is a nine-year government contracting certification that helps socially and economically disadvantaged businesses compete against large businesses.

“The bottom line philosophy is the more you know the rules of the game or the more you know about government contracting, the greater you’ll succeed,” Loder said. “Definitely knowledge is power.”

In 1995, Jay Reddy started ProLogic Inc. as a single-person business supporting local companies, such as some of the prime defense contractors in the area. The business now has nearly 300 employees and supports customers across the country.

Headquartered in Fairmont, ProLogic does systems integration and information technology support services for different government agencies. The company is predominately a government contractor and does high-end work that is broad-based.

ProLogic is currently involved in at least 30 contracts, Reddy said. The business also has offices in Pennsylvania, Virginia, California, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Wisconsin and Maryland.

Reddy, chairman and CEO of ProLogic, was a participant in the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program and graduated in December 2007.

“It helped us compete for a slice of the government work,” he said.

“It was still competitive work, but in a limited pool of the 8(a) contractors.”

ProLogic basically began as a subcontractor mostly in a consulting role, but the 8(a) program allowed the business to start winning prime contracts and larger positions as a subcontractor with meaningful work, Reddy said.

“The program has helped us to grow,” he said. “It helped us to build up some capabilities. We’ve been competing in the full and open business world, but now we’re in a full and open competitive world.”

SBA Procurement Center Representative Barbara Weaver, who works in Philadelphia out of the Office of Government Contracting, designed an extensive 96-hour course that covers specific portions of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) for federal contracts. She is the primary instructor.

Students in the Certificate Program in Federal Acquisition Management meet two full days a month from July to December at Veterans Square in Fairmont. The program is an initiative of the Center for Workforce Education at Pierpont Community & Technical College of Fairmont State University, the U.S. SBA, and the West Virginia Small Business Development Center.

The second class graduated from the program on Dec. 13, 2007, and the third series will start this summer. So far, around 30 individuals have completed the six-segment program.

The course features guest instructors, business and agency representatives, and panels. Weaver also relies on the talents of class members who are knowledgeable on certain topics. Hands-on research and real-life exercises are a big part of the program, and participants prepare projects, proposals and presentations within the course. A final exam marks the end of the program.

Weaver said students don’t only gain knowledge of federal contracts from the program; they also learn how to find answers and be more proactive. Contracting with the federal government can help a small business in many ways, she said.

“It’s still one of the biggest markets in the world,” Weaver said. “I believe it’s one of the fairest markets in the world. It’s just a good way to grow your business base and diversify.”

Several students have taken advantage of scholarships available through WORKFORCE West Virginia for the Federal Acquisition Management Program, Weaver said. Some 8(a) businesses have also participated.

Paul Schreffler, director of economic development and workforce education for Pierpont Community & Technical College, said many companies in the area are involved in federal government contracting.

“Our goal is to increase the number of companies, small businesses especially, that can provide goods and services for the federal government,” he said. “There’s a good opportunity there.”

Schreffler said the Federal Acquisition Management Program focuses on providing growth and maximizing the potential of area businesses. Companies that have completed the program have already been awarded their “first big federal contract” and have increased their business, he said.

“They can take that knowledge back to their company and apply it immediately,” Schreffler said. “It’s been a very effective program.”

“It’s supporting companies and jobs in this area.”

Four employees of Healthcare Management Solutions in Fairmont have finished the Federal Acquisition Management Program, and one worker has attended select classes.

Healthcare Management Solutions provides health care consulting and business solutions for various organizations and agencies directly related to health care. Owners Patti Hodges and Leah Heimbach, both nurses by training, started the business in 2002.

“We decided that there were things that we could do to help health care organizations improve their business operations,” Hodges said.

The majority of the company’s work is with the federal government in the Department of Health and Human Services. Healthcare Management Solutions also has an office in Columbia, Md. Between the two locations, the business has 32 employees and 160 independent contractors.

“By having some of our employees attend that program, it’s given them better insight into how the federal government works in terms of contracting and projects,” Hodges said. “It’s important when you do work with the federal government that you understand all the regulations that are inherent with the contract.”

The SBA helped the business gain the tools to improve its chances of landing a contract, Hodges said. Healthcare Management Solutions received its first federal contract in September 2005. Heimbach said the company now has seven contracts.

“We’re glad to have the opportunity to send employees to this training,” Heimbach said. “It strengthens the company’s overall ability to provide (services) ... if they’re more knowledgeable. We’re appreciative to the SBA for providing that.”

Hodges said government contracting has expanded the company’s opportunities as far as the agencies it has become involved with and the type of work it does.

NEW-BOLD Enterprises in White Hall does government contracting work as a prime contractor and also supports other government contracting efforts as a subcontractor, owner Nancy Newbold said. The business has done work with Northrop Grumman Corp., Electronic Warfare Associates Inc. (EWA), ManTech International Corp. and other companies.

Before forming her company, Newbold worked for a research and development company for 10 years that dealt with a lot of government contracts. During that time, she learned about the ins and outs of government contracting.

“When I started my own business, my aim was to provide support to other small businesses in the area ... and that’s still what we do,” she said.

Two of the company’s employees have graduated from the Federal Acquisition Management Program, and one worker has taken a couple classes and will continue more this year.

Businesses involved in government contracting are controlled by the Federal Acquisition Regulations, and teams need to understand these rules and know how to navigate through them, Newbold said.

“It’s really important to a company that is doing government contracting work to have their people be very familiar with it,” she said. “It’s a lot of legal stuff.”

Newbold said the Federal Acquisition Management Program is a great place for businesses to start gaining this knowledge.

“The real benefit is our accuracy and our ability to do as we’ve been contracted to do,” she said. “We strive for excellence, and this is part of it.”

By contracting with the government, NEW-BOLD Enterprises started as a one-person company and grew to 23 employees. The business has worked with many agencies and prime contractors, and Newbold looks forward to forming new partnerships.

E-mail Jessica Legge at jlegge@timeswv.com.