If you’re a government contractor, you’ve likely heard of the Federal Procurement Data System — Next Generation (FPDS-NG), the GSA’s central database repository of statistical information on federal contracting.� With a web interface that allows government agencies to enter data directly into the system, FPDS-NG offers information on many contracts almost immediately.� In fact, this past year the GSA updated the system with a new look and additional data as well as enhanced reporting and tools to further improve data timeliness and accuracy.�

Indeed, many contractors seeking information on a specific contract refer to this portal, which offers free access to more than 12 million contract actions spanning the entire federal government.

However, some don’t realize that FPDS-NG can be leveraged as a more powerful resource for data mining.� Market Connections and several of our government contractor clients often utilize it as a key source for secondary market research as well as a tool for developing and/or refining primary research studies.� For instance, the database can reveal:

• Contract awards by contractor type, including large business, small business and education
• Proposals or statements of work for specific contracts�
• Procurement habits and trends of specific government agencies and departments
  Competitors who are under government contracts to sell specific kinds of products or services
• Estimated market shares of products, services, or companies based on spending within the overall government or within specific agencies/departments

Here’s a case in point.� A client recently asked Market Connections to conduct a survey of government agency decision makers regarding a group of products and services.� However, because the client was primarily a commercial firm with only a handful of government customers, they weren’t sure which agencies to target with their offerings or, therefore, the survey.

Since Product Service Code (PSC) data is available in the FPDS-NG, Market Connections determined the appropriate PSCs for the products and services of interest.� From there, we ran a report detailing the dollar value for each PSC by agency and department.� With granular spending data relevant to their offerings, the client was able to intelligently prioritize and target government entities, to which Market Connections then targeted the survey.

Of course, FPDS-NG is a sophisticated self-service tool.� So, to optimize searches and create useful reports, users should first review the User’s Manual and help files to familiarize themselves with the system.� To learn more, visit http://www.fpds.gov or call us here at Market Connections.

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This entry was posted on Friday, June 15th, 2007 at 8:58 am and is filed under Government. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.