Would-be SBI-Net subcontractors swarm Boeing
With $2 billion floating around, many smaller companies are looking for a taste; after a rushed first task order, some are dissatisfied; Boeing asks for patience until early next year when contracting will recommence at “break-neck speed”
When Boeing succeeded in winning DHS’s $2 billion SBI-Net border security contract, no doubt the company’s engineers and business executives felt like Democrats after the recent midterm elections. Jubilant they no doubt remain, but the victory had a downside: Boeing team leaders are so busy talking to would-be subcontractors that they have hardly any time to work on the project itself. According to Washington Technology, hundreds of small businesses have already signed up on Boeing’s on-line SBI-Net registry, and many more are jamming the company’s switchboard. “I know people are frustrated, but we can only take so many calls per day,” Capture Team Leader Wayne Esser said. “Everyone knows someone at Boeing. I don’t blame them; I know they’re anxious. We won’t leave anyone out.” Some, however, are already feeling rejected.
DHS’s scheduled timeframe for completion of the first task order is only eight months, and so Boeing has had to make a number of rushed decisions. One executive who said he was rejected — he asked that his company’s name not be used — learned later that Boeing had already selected similar hardware. “The only difference is our product costs pennies to operate,” said the unnamed executive. “I would expect their product doesn’t come close to the low cost of our product.” A manager at a different firm had a similar experience. “We approached Boeing and were rejected
