On August 19, Paschen and SYTE Corporation, a small general contractor in the Chicago area, announced that the United States Small Business Administration (SBA) in Washington, D.C., formally approved our joint application for a Mentor/Protégé Agreement in the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program between F.H. Paschen and SYTE Corporation. This approval is in effect for a 1-year period. It is annually reviewed by the SBA for adherence to Agreement provisions and may be renewed for a maximum of 6 years.
The purpose of this federal Program is to encourage eligible Mentors to provide a broad range of business development assistance to eligible small business Protégés primarily but not exclusively in the federal market place. Such assistance may include technical and/or management assistance, financial assistance in the form of equity investments and/or loans, subcontracts, and/or assistance in performing prime contracts with the federal Government through joint venture arrangements. Accordingly, our first joint venture named Syte Paschen JV has been formed and we are actively pursuing federal contract work with our new Protégé as one feature of our assistance to SYTE Corporation.
According to Mario L. Short, SYTE’s president, “This SBA approved partnership with F.H. Paschen will enable SYTE to expand its construction and facilities maintenance offering, while pursuing more complex projects around the nation. Being able to working collaboratively with an industry leader like F.H. Paschen, makes me confident we are better positioned than ever to add tremendous value to our valued clients and partners.”
Paschen President and CEO James Blair stated, “Paschen has a long and successful history of mentoring small businesses, with a special emphasis on disadvantaged, minority-and women-owned enterprises. We view the small businesses we work with as our partners, working closely with them to help them develop through new business opportunities and invaluable experience on larger, more complex jobs. Moreover, we have admired the manner in which Mario has championed the work of SYTE for years. His ethical, disciplined, and strategic approach aligned perfectly with our business model, and made establishing a strategic Mentor/Protégé partnership a no-brainer.”
SYTE is F.H. Paschen’s 3rd protégé since 2010. The first two, Industria Paschen and dsi Paschen, and their associated joint ventures, were successful in achieving over $70 million in federal contract awards from the US Army Corps of Engineers, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Ohio National Guard, Wisconsin National Guard, US Air Force, US Air Force Reserve and the General Services Administration (GSA) in the states of Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.