By Jessica Legge
FAIRMONT — Chirag Patel said he was honored and humbled to be named the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2008 West Virginia Minority Small Business Person of the Year.
Patel is the president, CEO and founder of Innovative Management & Technology Services LLC, located at the Alan B. Mollohan Innovation Center in Fairmont’s I-79 Technology Park.
Judy McCauley, director of the SBA’s West Virginia District Office in Clarksburg, presented Patel with the award Wednesday afternoon during the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation’s Roundtable Luncheon, held at the I-79 Technology Park Research Center.
McCauley said the 2008 winner is a “shining example” of what one person with big aspirations can achieve.
“I think this is just a wonderful accomplishment, pretty much in part for the entire company,” Patel said. “I couldn’t have done it without the support of our folks. The employees are what define our company and what make us who we are.”
IMTS is a federal government systems integrator that provides information technology support and science and engineering support, he said. Its customer base in West Virginia includes the FBI in Clarksburg and the NASA IV&V; Facility in Fairmont.
The company supports the following areas: biometrics/biotechnology; high performance and grid computing; information technology; intelligence processing; program management; space systems analysis and technology; systems development; and systems engineering, design and integration.
Patel started IMTS in 1999, but business really didn’t take off on the federal side until 2001, he said. The company’s first growth spurt occurred in 2005 when it purchased DN American Inc., another systems integrator in Fairmont, he said.
“That’s what gave us the leverage to expand into other federal agencies, including Department of Defense, Department of Energy and Department of Treasury, and that also includes FBI and NASA,” Patel said.
This acquisition led to expansion into other states. IMTS has satellite offices in Huntsville, Ala., and Dayton, Ohio, and supports numerous customers in the Washington, D.C., area.
The home office in Fairmont, which provides corporate support to the customer base, has five employees. The company’s total West Virginia operations add up to 70 workers. Patel said he’s grateful for the work that the employees do to take care of IMTS’ customers.
In addition to the SBA award, IMTS was ranked No. 323 in Inc. Magazine’s “Inc. 500.” Washington Technology magazine also named IMTS as No. 10 in its “Fast 50,” which recognizes small businesses that are growing and up and coming in the Washington, D.C., area.
All three of IMTS’ recent recognitions are on a national scale, and Patel said it’s “just a wonderful opportunity.”
“It helps us leverage our capabilities and just promotes our capabilities .... It’s a crowing achievement for all of us,” he said.
E-mail Jessica Legge at jlegge@timeswv.com.
