Avineon has entered into an advisory agreement with Harris under the Homeland Security Department’s mentor/protégé program designed to foster partnerships between large contractors and small, disadvantaged firms.
Under the three-year agreement, Harris will help Avineon, which provides information technology, geospatial and program management services, compete for contract awards and additional business opportunities with DHS. Harris will also provide technical training and professional development. It will instruct Avineon on business acquisition processes and support the company’s process improvement initiatives.
Avineon received a Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) Level 3 rating in November 2005 for its systems and software engineering solutions. The company has about 400 employees in its offices in Northern Virginia and India.
Harris will also help Avineon in its software improvement initiatives to move forward to CMMI levels 4 and 5.
Charles Erdrich, vice president of business development at Avineon, said in a statement that being Harris’ first small-business protégé partner is a great opportunity. “There is a strong synergy between our firms, and we look forward to benefiting from Harris’ experience as a successful prime contractor and jointly pursuing opportunities in homeland security.”
Rick Simonian, vice president of programs at the Harris Government Communications Systems Division’s homeland security unit, said Avineon has been a trusted subcontractor. “We’re committed to further developing and building upon the company’s reputation for providing quality software and system solutions to the federal government,” he said.
