Woman-Owned Services Company Lands Project in Saudi Arabia With Ex-Im Bank Small-Business Products

Debbie Askin, CEO of Team Askin Technologies Inc (TATI). Photo courtesy of TATI.

Team Askin Technologies Inc. (TATI) is a 45-employee, woman-owned company that provides software and consulting services, including regulatory information management systems and aviation regulatory expertise. In late 2009, TATI was awarded a large multimillion dollar contract by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia General Authority of Civil Aviation in Jeddah. The contract services included developing and implementing aviation regulations, policy and guidance materials, inspector training, safety management system programs and an authorization document system.

TATI President and CEO Debby Askin realized that her company needed working capital for this major project and obtained a $2.8 million working capital loan from PNC Bank backed by an Ex-Im Bank guarantee. The funds were used to post the bond requirement for the project and provide more resources to complete it. The company then worked with Global Insurance Services to obtain Ex-Im Bank’s single-buyer export-credit insurance policy of $5 million to mitigate the risk of nonpayment.

“The working capital allowed us to post the 10 percent bond required by our contract,” said Ms. Askin. “Most small businesses do not have that amount of disposable working capital. Thanks to the loan guarantee provided by Ex-Im Bank, we were able to obtain the funds to meet this important contract and increase our exports tenfold.”