Upper Peninsula Company Selected as Michigan’s Best Small Business of the Year

NEWBERRY, MI – A Newberry-based aerospace and military support system is receiving statewide recognition. Northern Wings has been selected as the Michigan Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) Best Small Business of the Year. Northern Wings, a long-time client of the Northwest Michigan PTAC, was recognized for using PTAC assistance to grow their business and for their involvement in the community. The Northwest Michigan PTAC is based in Traverse City and serves businesses in the northwest Lower Peninsula and the entire Upper Peninsula.

Northern Wings works with the military and other government programs and offers a variety of services including maintenance, repair, supply chain, manufacturing, and importing and exporting. The company has been using PTAC services since it formed in 2001. Northern Wings President, Dave Goudreau, says starting and growing Northern Wings would have been “virtually impossible” without the assistance of the PTAC.

“I don’t know that there are very many employees here who haven’t been touched by some level of PTAC training and/or orientation,” said Goudreau.

“We’re proud to play a small part in Northern Wing’s success,” said Cathy Fairbanks, Northwest Michigan PTAC Regional Director. “I often hold them up as an example of how to be successful in the government marketplace.”

Through the efforts of only four full-time PTAC employees, over $79 million dollars have been awarded to companies in Northwest Lower Michigan and the Upper Peninsula in 2018, and nearly 400 jobs have been created or sustained due to Client Contract Award dollars.

Northwest Michigan PTAC staff members also received special recognition during the past year. Procurement Counselor, Don Makowski, received a Silent Partner Award from the Wisconsin
Procurement Institute (WPI) for his dedication to development of the federal contracting community. Northwest Michigan PTAC Regional Director, Cathy Fairbanks, received the Women in Defense (WID) Michigan Chapter Horizon Industry Award for her work within the defense industry.

The Northwest PTAC provides no-cost technical consulting, training, and marketing services aimed at assisting companies with obtaining and performing under local, state, and federal contracts. PTAC’s services include personalized one-on-one counseling, bid match notifications, contracting and subcontracting assistance, pre- and post-award assistance, and more. PTAC offers assistance through all stages of government contracting.

The Northwest Michigan PTAC is a program of Networks Northwest and is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the Defense Logistics Agency and in part by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). To learn more about PTAC’s services, visit nwm.org/ptac.

#        #        #