Each year the SBA honors small businesses that have provided the federal government with outstanding goods and services. Within each of its 10 regions, the SBA chooses one regional business for this award. TAI, a small business in Houghton, Michigan, and a TARDEC contractor, is the winner from Region V which includes Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. This is the third award they've won for the year 2000.

TAI is an innovative and enthusiastic performer and a key player in helping meet Future Combat Systems and 21st Century Truck goals.

The company was awarded three SBIR contracts from TARDEC organizations and has been heavily involved in the vehicle total thermal management CRADA between FORD and TARDEC. They developed a commercial software program that is quickly becoming the automotive industry standard for solving thermal management problems during the design phase as well as for trouble shooting problems on existing vehicles.

The military version of this software has been picked up by the Army, Air Force and Intelligence communities as well as several foreign governments and DOD contractors such as UDLP, Boeing and Teledyne Brown Engineering.

Last August, TAI was one of four contractors who received the Army Quality Award for the SBIR Program. In October, they received the Tibbets Award for outstanding performance. This third award, which required many civic and professional criteria to be met, clearly indicates that this small business has created a large presence in the area of thermal modeling. Visit their website at www.thermoanalytics.com.

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