New Business Development Initiative
Continues to Assist State Businesses

Many people dream of owning their own business, but have no idea where to start. Too often, small businesses end in failure because the owners were uninformed of many of the obstacles facing today’s small businesses. However, the state of West Virginia has a solution.

Over a dozen West Virginia entrepreneurs attended a meeting at the Development Office on August 6. The purpose of this meeting, and others offered twice monthly, was to encourage individuals to not only start small businesses, but also to register as vendors with the state Purchasing Division.

Bob Henrich, the Development Office’s Program Manager, made sure that those who attended were prepared through education. "The key to this whole process [of starting a business] is planning," explained Henrich.

During the meeting, Henrich, along with Kevin Twohig of the Small Business Development Center and Purchasing’s New Business Development Manager Scott Padon, explained the process of how to get started as a new business.

Twohig informed the attendees of the state licensing process, after which Padon explained the importance of becoming a registered vendor, learning the bid process and understanding the vendor's responsibilities when awarded a state contract.

The Purchasing Division recently began participating in these semi-monthly meetings. "I am pleased to have the opportunity to share this valuable information with representatives of developing or growing businesses," said Padon. The Development Office plans to continue these meetings to assist new state businesses.

The Correctional Industries' print shop in Charleston has been relocated from its former Jefferson Street facility to its new building at 617 Leon Sullivan Way (formerly known as Broad Street).

"We had 23 regular working days to get everything done," explained George Hampton, Director of Correctional Industries. "We thought we could do it, but knew it would be close." The deadline to move into the new facility was August 31st.

Sounds like a simple task, right? With the deadline approaching, the new building needed to be renovated, which included installing telephone lines, gas lines and meters, network hook-ups, and central heating and cooling. In addition, the building needed to be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Once all of the logistics were completed with the new building, Hampton and his staff had to tackle the hardest part...physically moving the heavy equipment. To move the forklift to the new site, a flat bed truck had to be used. Fortunately, there was some relief, since the quick copy equipment had to be moved by the contracted vendor.

As hectic as the situation became, Bill Wimer, Depart-ment of Corrections' Con-struction Manager, and Steve Freed, Deputy Director of Correctional Industries, continued to be assured that the benefits would be overwhelming.

The new facility is at least three times the size of the old Jefferson Street location, which means more storage space, according to Hampton. Supplies will not have to be stored separately from the printing operation, making the printing process more convenient. The new site has more parking for employees and customers. Staff from the Department of Environmental Protection and the Supreme Court will also be utilizing this building.

Distance is a factor, in that the new Leon Sullivan Way location is not within walking distance of the State Capitol Complex. For this reason, Correctional Industries is making more changes than just the location. "We’re going to upgrade the software," said Hampton. "This way, print jobs can be sent electronically to the new location, which will alleviate driving to our facility." At least two drop boxes will be located at the Capitol Complex for requests for printing. One location will be at the Purchasing Division (Building 15) and the other at the Commissioner of Corrections' office (Building 4).

Hampton emphasized that one agency could not have handled the move exclusively. He explained that the Department of Administration was extremely helpful in this endeavor. Along with the Department of Corrections, assistance was offered from the General Services Division and Information Services and Communications Division to make the Correctional Industries' move run smoothly. "It was definitely a group effort," said Hampton.