AmCham and the U.S. Military Host Workshop on ‘How to do Business with the U.S. Military’

The first part of the session was covered by Mr.Jared Mitchel, Contracting Specialist. The presenter highlighted what SAM is, why SAM.gov registration, and shared important facts about SAM. The system for award management SAM is an official website of the U.S. government. Mr. Mitchel emphasized that SAM registration is free for any organization, and SAM representatives do not accept payments to be awarded United States government contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements. Mr. Mitchel spoke in depth about what is the (NATO) commercial and government entity (NCAGE) code, entity validation and registration, unique entity IDs, as well as the requirements for companies to get started.

Mr. Douglas Dunn, the second presenter, discussed the Joint Contingency Contracting System (JCCS) registration and explained how vendors can access it as he reviewed the step-by-step process.

Following the discussion, McKinney the U.S. Air Force Contracting Specialist, covered the Government Purchase Card (GPC) Program. She spoke about the GPC program When to use the GPC, the delivery process, and the local vendors.

Mr. Nicholson, the U.S. Air Force Contracting Specialist, targeted the following topics of having a high-level understanding of the procurement process — Planning, Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award selection. Ms. Shayla Lucas U.S. Army Corps of Engineer spoke about the benefits to the suppliers, such as knowing how the government accepts, reviews, and awards quotes to promote fair opportunity, allowing suppliers to judge whether they can satisfy Government requirements, improving efficiency in proposal prep, evaluation, negotiation, and award; help you to ensure that your quotes are responsible and fair and reasonable; and ensure that you are not deemed non-conforming and give you a better chance for award.

Mr. Suphakit Areeyat TSC Procurement Chief of RCC-KU gave a quick brief about MATOC. The MATOC discussions will showcase major business prospects with the US military for a 5-year contract. This highly rewarding opportunity calls on construction companies duly registered in SAM and JCCS and must have a NAICS code.

LT Jacob Davis, Contracting Officer Representative (COR) spoke about the hospital capabilities that they use such as cardiac cath lab, cardiology, dermatology, interventional radiology, inpatient services, cardiology, EENT, Gastroenterology, General Surgery, hematology, neurology, neurosurgery, OB/GYN, optometry, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, radiology, urology, vascular Surgery, radiology (MRI, CT, Fluoroscopy). Mr. William Lucas, CTIP Coordinator for RCC-KU, a U.S. military presenter, spoke about their efforts in combating human trafficking (Counter Trafficking in Persons (CTIP)), Federal Acquisition Regulations, and compliance with minimum requirements for vendors doing business with the U.S. Military and their employees. Presenters emphasized that companies receive an annual CTIPS compliance certification based on their review and explained the remediation process if a company is found to violate CTIPs.

SG Jamie Davila Lara, Contracting Specialist the last presenter who spoke about the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE). PIEE is a suite of business information systems for the company’s U.S. Federal sales, and it is home to the Wide Area Workflow (WAWF) and Electronic Data Access (EDA), MyInvoice, and other capabilities. He also spoke about WAWF which is a module within the broader PIEE, as WAWF is a secure Web-based system for electronic invoicing, receipt, and acceptance. She also stated that WAWF is the official system through which contractors must submit shipping/receiving reports and invoices. Subsequently, the presenters provided an in-depth explanation of PIEE self-registration and how vendors can gain access to the mentioned. To conclude the detailed guidance, she spoke about common WAWF invoice document types, Terminology, Roles and responsibilities, Importance of SAM, and the rejections of invoices.

ABCK-AmCham Kuwait is a non-profit organization operating since 1985 and is composed of Fortune 500 corporations, small and medium-sized companies, and prominent business leaders and entrepreneurs, both American and Kuwaiti. ABCK-AmCham Kuwait acts as an advocate for American interest in the state of Kuwait. For More Information, please visit our website at www.amchamkuwait.org or follow us on the social media channels @abck1985