Small Businesses’ Unexplored Talents Are Key to Innovation

NAVAIR Deputy Commander Tom Rudowsky speaks with Southern Maryland small business representatives at the SBA/SBIR Program sponsored by The Patuxent Partnership and the Small Business Development Center on July 23.

Delivering outcomes that matter to the warfighter takes an environment of engagement and partnership created by both naval aviation and small businesses, according to Naval Air Systems Command Deputy Commander Tom Rudowsky, speaking last month at a program sponsored by The Patuxent Partnership and the Small Business Development Center.

Mr. Rudowsky spoke to more than 100 local small business representatives at the Small Business Administration/Small Business Innovation Research, or SBIR, program July 23.

“Most innovations come from small businesses,” he said. “You are key elements in changing the game in this era of great competition. Accomplishing the mission requires all elements of the industrial base, not just large businesses. It will take all of us to expand capability.”

He asked small businesses to look at their expertise from a different perspective and determine how they could apply that expertise to different areas and needs within NAVAIR, the Navy, other government agencies, and beyond. Small businesses’ specialized expertise, niche solutions, rapid innovation, flexibility, and responsiveness are only a few attributes that can give the edge to naval aviation warfighting. “There are areas where you have abilities you have yet to recognize,” he said.

Partnering with NAVAIR, Mr. Rudowsky said, begins with sharing a common goal — delivering the outcomes that matter to the warfighter.

“It’s also about delivering capabilities when they [warfighters] need it,” he emphasized. “Think about and identify gaps and how those gaps can be closed. Your perspective will help us get there.”

He also acknowledged that including and engaging with all stakeholders in the acquisition process, especially small businesses, is critical to reaching NAVAIR’s goals.

“We need to ensure the opportunity to contribute is available to everyone. Help us identify the impediments to partnering with us so we can make the process smoother,” he said.

NAVAIR is expanding opportunities through open topics, which are solicitations for submissions in which small businesses propose solutions to broad warfighting needs, explained NAVAIR SBIR/Small Business Technology Transfer Programs Director Kristi DePriest, one of the event’s panelists.

For example, the current Broad Agency Announcement, SBIR 24.4, is an open topic that lists NAVAIR’s three areas of interests in advanced robotic automation for the Fleet Readiness Centers: advanced robotic systems integration for aircraft maintenance and repair; human-robot collaboration and safety in aviation maintenance repair overhaul; and emerging technologies for autonomous aviation maintenance.

The BAA is open until September 4 and is available here.

Innovation that will help naval aviation outpace the threat lies in small businesses’ creativity, Mr. Rudowsky said.

“Engage, communicate, and partner with us,” he said. “We are always learning.”

This article was provided by NAVAIR News.

About The Patuxent Partnership

The Patuxent Partnership is a nonprofit member organization that fosters collaboration between government, industry, and academia to advance education through STEM-based initiatives; to advance technology through speaker programs, forums, and networking; to advance science and technology transfer through the exchange of ideas, information, and data related to technologies; and to increase workforce development through an array of initiatives.

To learn more about The Patuxent Partnership and its programs, visit its Leader member page.