Over the next five years, New York State’s Fiscal Year 2018-2019 Infrastructure Plan projects capital spending to exceed $150 billion through several significant capital, infrastructure and service initiatives.

There is a huge drive in NYS for the utilization of MWBE’s and SDVOB’s on all of these projects. Since the combination of all of these projects will last at least 5 years, it is important that you start your work now to find out which primes and compliance contractors are involved and where you can fit in. Capitalizing on “long-term” projects like these can provide a consistent source of revenue for many companies and with the recent changes in Article 15A (discretionary increased to $500K), this can be a significant game changer for disadvantaged contractors.

Many small contractors think that these infrastructure projects only relate to construction companies. It is true that the vast majority of the funds are for construction, but there’s a significant percentage allocated to other services that you may provide. Food, safety, marketing, IT, security, compliance, signage, and all sorts of services will also be needed. Some areas of procurement may not be obvious, which is why you need to get involved with the various compliance contractors that have already been awarded. They can help with the research you’ll need as well as insuring a fair amount of projects are equitably distributed to MWBE and SDVOB contractors, or at the very least find opportunity to bid.

There are also efforts to insure businesses within the surrounding communities benefit as well. This means if your business resides within those communities or hires people from them, your odds of getting a contract are increased, although not guaranteed. It provides for community economic development by increasing contract opportunities, revenue for the community, and most importantly, Jobs.

Here are some things to consider in your preparation:

  • Seeking guidance
  • Who are the primes
  • Vendor negotiations (get the best pricing from your suppliers and manufacturers)
  • Who are the compliance contractors
  • Related meetings and events
  • Network, network, network
  • Marketing
  • Access to capital
  • Teaming and partnerships
  • Capacity building (labor, project management, internal resources)
  • Bonding

The time to get involved is now. Don’t miss out on your piece of the pie.

You can read more about these project at the links below: