The U.S. Connection

Knock on doors early to supply disaster relief efforts

September 14, 2006

Last year’s hurricane season in the United States revealed critical shortfalls in supplies, logistics and disaster-response planning. Canadian entrepreneurs willing to learn from the experiences of others and start building business relationships now could be well positioned to meet American needs when hurricane season rolls around.

As a result of previous shortcomings, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has set up dozens of agreements with other federal agencies, streamlining disaster coordinators’ ability to quickly order and pay for essential supplies, services and equipment, and to make emergency resources available, including airlift, medical teams and operations bases.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, an American Red Cross volunteer hands ready-to-eat meals to three sisters in Bayou La Batre, Alabama. U.S. officials are looking to improve their response to such disasters by increasing emergency supplies like meals, ice, water and blankets.

For instance, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has stockpiled 770 truckloads of ready-to-eat meals, 1,540 trucks of water, and 2,030 truckloads of ice—easily triple what it had on hand before Hurricane Katrina struck.

D&B Specialty Foods of Toronto supplied thousands of those ready-to-eat meals. In 2005, D&B did over $6 million in business with disaster response partners including the U.S. Department of Defense, the American Red Cross and the Church of Christ. It now expects orders from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Salvation Army and the United States Agency for International Development.

Tony Baker, CEO of Market Access Worldwide of Richmond Hill, Ontario, advised D&B Speciality Foods on their business development effort. In his view, constant contact is critical.

"Get the right person, someone who knows your industry and has strong contacts with the agencies you want to reach and who can represent your company in Washington D.C. on a day-to-day basis. You need someone that can facilitate the right kind of introductions. That’s going to cost you, but the long-term returns can be very high."

C.S. Leung, former Marketing Director for Durakit Shelters of Bradford, Ontario, would agree. Durakit won a $16-million order from FEMA to provide 350 permanent housing units following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This was their first FEMA contract.

Leung attributes their success to establishing relationships. "We went to see FEMA in 2002 when we were developing our product, two to three years before Hurricane Katrina hit. We made a presentation to the desk officer responsible for carrying out procurement of emergency housing. We just found them in the FEMA directory, by making a cold call and coming to Washington."

"Durakit’s CEO kept in touch with the people we met, four or five times a year, and that effort paid off. When we called back two days after the hurricane hit, we got referred quickly to the right people, who started making inquiries and got things moving."

Laura Aune, a Canadian trade commissioner in Dallas, observes that many Canadian exporters who sought disaster response contracts in the U.S. southeast last year didn’t know that others besides FEMA were involved in the contracting. "Most companies need partnerships with prime contractors and relationships with buyers in many aid agencies at all levels. I can help, but the time to start is before disaster strikes," she says.

To help Canadian companies interested in this market, Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service has produced a report called Government Procurement Market Information; Following the Response to Hurricane Katrina, includes contacts for buyers and partners, and tells how Canadian companies can position themselves for success to meet federal, state and local agency needs.

"The Canadian companies who will win the business next time are already building key relationships and documenting their track records as reliable emergency suppliers. In times of crisis, buyers first turn to their trusted vendors and that means companies that already have contract vehicles in place. That’s where the first, and second, waves of business went in the 2005 hurricane response," notes Judy Bradt of trade consultancy Summit Insight and author of the report.

Helpful tips

Bradt offers this advice for exporters positioning themselves to win U.S. disaster response business : "I agree that contacts are key. But remember that the buying process also may have changed since last time, so review the newest disaster response plans DHS has published too," she says. "Successful suppliers have figured out how their supply chain will be managed next time, who will be making the decisions about buying the products or services that they can offer and how to get to know those people now."

For more information, download the Hurricane Katrina report at www.international.gc.ca/sell2usgov and get the latest DHS National Response Plan from www.dhs.gov.