Get to know SAM.
Customers call us all the time thrilled that we have helped them find opportunities with the Federal Government. A common question that follows is now that I have identified a bid that suits my business, how do I let the Government know who I am and that I want to provide them product or services? The Government needs to know whom you are and what you do in order to do business with them. For this purpose there is SAM.
SAM stands for the System for Award Management. This is the central repository of entities that are registered to do business with the Federal Government. If you want to do business with the Government you need to register with SAM; registration is free. It is the official U.S. Government System that consolidated the capabilities of the CCR/FedReg, ORCA, and EPLS.
To register go to www.sam.gov
You must first create a user account and then you can register your Entity (business or individual).
Before you begin to Register you will need some additional information, this includes:
You will be unable to submit your registration online unless all the mandatory information is provided. * The Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code is a five-character ID number used extensively within the federal government, assigned by the Department of Defense's Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). You do not need to have a CAGE code prior to registration, as one will be automatically assigned to you as a part of your entity's registration in SAM.
The SAM website has a number of resources available online to assist in getting your business registered. In addition the Federal Service Desk (www.fsd.gov), has many FAQs regarding SAM, SAM registration and updates available as an online resource.
We hope that you find this information very useful, and hope that it aids your bidding process.