North and west Orange County holds some of the oldest defense and space work in California and some of the newest. Boeing’s Seal Beach teams design, build and operate the X-37B spaceplane, Karman Space & Defense is headquartered in Huntington Beach, and Mach Industries has built a 115,000 square foot headquarters and factory there. GERC gets the suppliers around them registered, certified, CMMC-ready and bidding.
The Orange County Business Journal counted 5,035 Boeing employees in the county in 2026, and about 2,000 at RTX’s Raytheon site in Fullerton in 2025. Beneath those names sits a supply chain of machine shops, electronics firms, test labs, engineering subcontractors and service companies.
Who is buying here
Karman Space & Defense, based in Huntington Beach, won a place in January 2026 on the Missile Defense Agency’s SHIELD contract, a vehicle with a $151 billion ceiling. Mach Industries, which makes autonomous aircraft, engines, rocket motors and counter-drone systems, raised $600 million at a $3.7 billion valuation in September 2026 to scale its manufacturing. Boeing still operates in both Seal Beach and Huntington Beach.
Two military installations sit in the same corridor. Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach stores, loads, maintains and assesses weapons for Pacific Fleet ships, with detachments in Fallbrook and Norco. Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos is a California National Guard installation that also supports other defense agencies. Both buy facilities, maintenance, logistics and professional services.
Where smaller firms get in
- As a supplier to a prime. Parts, assemblies, testing, tooling and engineering support, usually through a prime’s supplier onboarding, which starts with SAM.gov and a CAGE code.
- Through DLA DIBBS. Machine shops and distributors can quote Defense Logistics Agency parts directly once registered, with JCP certification for controlled drawings.
- Through SBIR and STTR. Firms with technology of their own can win research funding without giving up equity. See our SBIR and STTR support.
- On base contracts. Facilities, maintenance, logistics and services, where small business set-asides are common.
Why cyber compliance comes first
If you handle Federal Contract Information or Controlled Unclassified Information, the requirement reaches you through your prime’s flow-down clauses.
- NIST SP 800-171 is the foundation. A System Security Plan and a POA&M documenting your gaps, with a score submitted to SPRS.
- Primes check before they award. A missing or weak SPRS score can remove you before price is discussed.
- It takes months, not weeks. See our NIST 800-171 and CMMC readiness page for how we sequence it.
What we do for north Orange County firms
- Readiness review. Where you stand on registrations, certifications and cyber, and the order to fix them in.
- Registration. SAM.gov, UEI and entity validation, CAGE code and DLA DIBBS.
- Certification. SB, SB-PW, DVBE, 8(a) and HUBZone where you qualify, plus California SB for state work.
- Bidding. A capability statement written for defense buyers, then proposals.
We serve Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, Los Alamitos, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Westminster, Garden Grove, Anaheim, Fullerton, Santa Ana, Orange and Brea. For county, city and state contracting, see our Orange County page.
Common questions
Can a machine shop in Huntington Beach sell directly to the Department of Defense?
Yes, through DLA DIBBS, the Defense Logistics Agency’s parts buying system. You need an active SAM.gov registration and a CAGE code, and JCP certification if you want access to controlled technical drawings.
How do we become a supplier to Boeing or another prime?
Primes run their own supplier onboarding, but almost all of them expect SAM.gov registration, a CAGE code, the right NAICS codes and, where you will handle controlled information, an SPRS score. Quality certifications such as AS9100 matter for hardware.
Does Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach buy from small businesses?
Navy installations buy facilities, maintenance, logistics and professional services, and many of those contracts are set aside for small businesses. Opportunities are posted on SAM.gov, so registration and the right NAICS codes come first.
How long before we can bid?
SAM.gov registration and a CAGE code usually take weeks. Certifications take longer, and NIST SP 800-171 readiness can take months. A readiness review first stops you doing them in the wrong order.
Do you meet in person?
When it helps. We are based in San Bernardino and travel for kickoffs, proposal reviews and board presentations. Most of the work runs remotely.
Schedule a Consultation
- Call (909) 454-7076 — the fastest route. Monday to Friday.
- Book a consultation — pick a time that suits you.
- Email us about Huntington Beach and Seal Beach — opens a message already titled, so it reaches the right person.
If you only want to know whether you need this at all, ask. There is no charge for that conversation.
GERC is a woman-led advisory firm led by Dr. Shirley Ayangbah, a PhD legal economist with more than 14 years of experience. Registered in SAM.gov under CAGE code 11SD2, certified as a California Small Business (Micro) and for Public Works. NAICS 541611, 541618 and 541690.