The City of Knoxville’s Purchasing Department honored five small, women- and minority-owned businesses for their customer service, entrepreneurship and leadership at the third annual Diversity Business Enterprise (DBE) Awards ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018.
The awards also saluted City departments and partners for their commitment to reaching out to DBEs with procurement contracts.
Every year, about $50 million is awarded in City contracts, and roughly 1 in 3 City dollars spent in competitively-bid contracts went to small businesses in the last fiscal year.
“That’s no accident,” said Deputy Finance Director Boyce Evans. “We know that small businesses help drive our local economy, and the City’s Purchasing Department is always eager to work with local DBEs to help them understand the specific contracts coming up for bid and what’s required to bid.
“In addition, we try to suggest strategies that small mom-and-pop companies might be able to use to successfully submit a bid. For example, they might look for opportunities to partner with other companies to team up on large, complicated projects.”
Click here to view more photos from the Awards Ceremony
Today’s honorees are:
• Arrow Crane Services, Rising Star Award
Arrow Crane was touted for its dependability and commitment to safety in its nomination: “It is a pleasure to be able to build a relationship with such an honest and hard-working company.”
• The Cor-Tenn Co., Above and Beyond Award
Cor-Tenn supplies many of the tools used by the City’s Public Service Department, including rechargeable battery-operated lawn equipment like chainsaws and blowers. Its services have made City horticulture operations more eco-friendly and the equipment lighter and more durable.
• Scientific Sales, Minority-owned Business of the Year Award
Scientific Sales supplies multiple City departments – hazardous waste cleanup materials used by the Fire Department, for example, or oil containment supplied used by Fleet Services. Nominations applauded Scientific Sales’ commitment to customer service and its role is enhancing neighborhood and environmental safety.
• Roadway Solutions, Woman-owned Business of the Year Award
Roadway Solutions has helped with replacement of guardrails – making streets safer, but also eliminating eyesores of rusted, damaged older guardrails. Roadway Solutions was also praised for assisting in the recycling of metal whenever possible.
• Design & Construction Services Inc., Small Business of the Year Award
DCSI “provides quality workmanship at competitive prices,” its nomination states. DCSI served as the prime contractor in fiscal year 2017-18 for neighborhood drainage projects, sidewalk repair projects, upgrades to eight Gay Street crosswalks and a Jackson Avenue streetscape project.
Meanwhile, Knoxville Area Transit, SMG, Policy & Redevelopment, and Plans Review & Inspections / Codes Enforcement were honored with Advocate Awards for their commitment to outreach to women- and minority-owned businesses.
Mike Bannon, KAT’s director of maintenance, was honored with the Employee Advocate of the Year Award.
Below is a video from CTV of the 2018 ceremony.
Click here to view a larger version of the video