The Nebraska Business Development Center (NBDC) and advice from the consultants in its Procurement Technical Assistance program has proved instrumental when Ameritex Services of Omaha bids on government contracts.
“The people at NBDC are very knowledgeable and helpful” says Mark Goldstrom, CEO at Ameritex Services, a commercial laundry service that specializes in the healthcare industry, “particularly for a company like ours that had no experience with government contracts.”
Goldstrom founded American Diaper Service in 1972 to serve the Omaha and Lincoln metropolitan areas. American Diaper Service was sold in 2005.
Ameritex Services was formed in 1999 by Goldstrom and his son, Brad, to provide an independent commercial laundry facility specializing in healthcare services in the Omaha area. The company is accredited by the Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Council (HLAC), a non-profit organization that inspects and certifies laundries that process textiles for hospitals, nursing homes, and other medical facilities. Additionally, Ameritex Services participates in a nationwide Laundry Environmental Stewardship Program, which is committed to environmental protection by a reduction in water, energy and chemical usage.
Ameritex Services has been a client of NBDC Consultant Mary Graff since August of 2002. Goldstrom says Graff and the Procurement Technical Assistance program’s “bid matching” service has been instrumental over the years in helping his company to find opportunities that they can bid. The company currently serves the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Omaha.
“Many years ago, we wanted the opportunity to bid on laundry services for the Omaha VA hospital because we felt their operation was inefficient, but they weren’t soliciting bids, so we lobbied Washington to open it up for bids,” Goldstrom says.
Ameritex Services was granted the initial contract, but in an effort to cut costs, Goldstrom says that last year the VA medical center began to use a different organization. Partially into that contract, however, the medical center administration, dissatisfied with the new laundry service, contacted Ameritex Services and awarded a short-term contract to fulfill the remainder of the contract period. On August 2, 2016, Ameritex Services was awarded a five-year contract for the laundry services.
“Mary has helped us with our SAM (federal System for Award Management) registration, and she sends us opportunities throughout the year,” Goldstrom says. “She is always on the lookout for us.”