Air Force's small business programs open doors for veterans Published June 19, 2007 WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- When this a small business manufacturer received its aerospace quality standard certification late last year, the company had no idea how far that accomplishment would take them. The training M2 Global received from the Air Force's Manufacturing Technical Assistance Production Program opened doors for the company and put them on a vector to the future. "As a nation still at war and as disabled veteran's return from Iraq and Afghanistan, I know that we all believe in giving back to those who have given so much for our Nation," said Ronald A. Poussard, Air Force Office of Small Business Programs director. MTAPP is an Air Force small business program that focuses on increasing and enhancing the competitiveness of small manufacturing firms in support of the Air Force and Department of Defense supply chain missions, said Lt. Col. William Blakeman, MTAPP chief. "MTAPP identifies small manufacturing firms as potential suppliers for Air Force and DoD programs, assesses their capabilities to provide services and commodities, and provides individualized technical assistance," he said. "M2 Global, as one of our MTAPP graduate companies, is an outstanding example of the multiple benefits generated by this program. M2 Global is a Service-disabled Veteran-owned small business that has been helped by the Air Force, and now directly supports our priority of recapitalizing and modernizing our Air Force," Colonel Blakeman said. M2 Global Technology Inc. is one of the many service-disabled veteran-owned businesses that work with the Air Force Office of Small Business Programs. M2 Global Technology Inc., a San Antonio-based, Service-disabled Veteran-owned small business manufacturer, caught the eye of Lockheed Martin as a result of their MTAPP experience. M2 Global was soon chosen to manufacture parts for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. "We are working on more than 100 different parts for eight airframes at present," said Douglas Carlberg, a former Army officer and M2 Global's chief executive officer and owner. "We started out with clips and brackets--that might sound simple, but I promise you it's not--and received kudos for our work. "The result was that we were recommended to the Lockheed Martin machining parts division," he said. "Now we are machining a number of highly complex parts for the aircraft." Lockheed Martin Aeronautics' small business director, Sam Evans, said M2 Global has a solid reputation within the company. Comment on this story (comments may be published on Air Force Link) Click here to view the comments/letters page