U.S. Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command’s Small Business Office, in collaboration with SpaceWERX, recently hosted their inaugural Sub-contracting Forum to accelerate the space acquisition process by connecting small businesses with space and defense industry prime contractors and Department of Defense (DoD) experts in El Segundo, California.
U.S. Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command’s Small Business Office, in collaboration with SpaceWERX, hosted their inaugural Sub-contracting Forum to accelerate the space acquisition process by connecting small businesses with space and defense industry prime contractors and Department of Defense (DoD) experts in El Segundo, California
SSC manages a $15.6 billion acquisition budget, working in partnership with industry to deliver systems varying from a new satellite or launch vehicle to ground-based sensors and communications equipment.
In most cases, the Department of Defense’s (DoD) lead partner on such programs is a prime contractor from the private sector, often a large aerospace or defense company whose name is a household word. In turn, primes are supported by scores or even hundreds of subcontractors, usually smaller companies that supply components or services to the larger company, and whose contribution to the overall program is managed by the prime. The large and small business categories are defined by the federal government using a variety of criteria.
“SSC, historically, has had a focus on buying the entire system: an entire satellite, or an entire satellite constellation,” said Aaron Parra, a contracting specialist who leads SSC’s Small Business Office. “Today, we are introducing agile, innovative small businesses to our supply chain via subcontracting opportunities both to broaden our access to cutting edge technologies and to work faster on behalf of our warfighters.”
Expanding the number of potential subcontractors and potentially helping some of the same companies make the move to serving as a prime contractor is the responsibility of SSC’s Small Business Office, which oversaw the award of contracts valued at almost $945 million in 2024 to qualified small businesses.
Although impressive, that amount is less than a tenth of the total SSC procurement budget that is open to small businesses—some $11.5 billion—most of which, instead, went to large businesses. The engagement at this event provided an opportunity for small businesses to engage prime contractors in support of USSF mission areas aimed at enhancing warfighting lethality and efficiency in support of nation defense. (U.S. Space Force Photo by Van Ha)
“I was excited when Aaron brought me the idea, and I stand behind the initiative and its desired outcomes,” said Deidra Eberhardt, a senior SSC official who oversees the command’s commercial, business, and acquisitions functions. “This is a relationship that we need to nurture to improve the opportunities for small business and for fortifying the prime contractor supply chain.”
At the forum, panelists discussed the roles of primes, how to bid as a subcontractor, and mentor-protégé programs for both primes and subcontractors facilitated by the Defense Department and the U.S. Small Business Administration.
“We need you, our small businesses. We need to increase resiliency in our supply chain,” said Patricia Pierson, Lockheed Martin Space’s manager of Small Business Programs, who spoke at the forum. “We’re going to accomplish this by inserting more competition in our supply chain to reduce single source dependencies, utilizing new, innovative, small business partners.”
With the success of the forum, SSC’s Small Business Office is planning for this to become an annual event in Los Angeles, and to potentially host similar events in other markets where the SSC operates, including California’s Central Coast, home to Vandenberg Space Force Base, and Central Florida, where Patrick Space Force Base and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station are located.
“We do have small business professionals at Patrick and Vandenberg, so we are hoping to do more localized outreach in those regions,” Parra said. “There is a wide range of needs—and opportunities—at those installations and others across the country, and we really want to make certain we can bring subcontractors with the capabilities we need on board, no matter where they are located. This should be a win-win-win, all around, for all of us.”
Resources for small businesses looking for opportunities with Space Systems Command or other DoD organizations:
Space Systems Command Commercial Space Office
The Commercial Space Office (COMSO) is responsible for accelerating commercial partnerships to deliver fight tonight capabilities aligned with warfighter needs.
Space Systems Command Small Business Office
The Small Business Office works specifically with small business owners who are interested in contracting opportunities with Space Systems Command.
Space Systems Command Front Door
The Front Door effort exists to help early-stage start-ups and innovative commercial enterprises explore opportunities to collaborate with USSF.
The Space Enterprise Consortium
The Space Enterprise Consortium, or SpEC, was created in 2017 through what was then the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, today’s SSC, at Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB).
Space Industry Days
Space Industry Days, and Reverse Industry Day events, provide industry an opportunity to receive presentations from USAF, USSF, and SSC’s senior leadership on current and emerging opportunities.
Article author: Brad Smith, SSC Public Affairs