Woman-Owned Manufacturers: Why Supplier Diversity Matters

The Business Case for Supplier Diversity

If you work in procurement, supply chain management, or vendor relations, you have seen the term "supplier diversity" on an increasing number of RFPs, corporate scorecards, and government contract requirements over the past decade. What started as a compliance checkbox has evolved into a legitimate supply chain strategy — one that delivers measurable business results beyond meeting a quota.

Supplier diversity means intentionally including businesses owned by underrepresented groups — women, minorities, veterans, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities — in your vendor base. For this article, we are focused on woman-owned manufacturers specifically, because that is who we are. Autac USA is a 100% woman-owned retractile cord manufacturer, and we have operated at the intersection of supplier diversity and American manufacturing since our founding in 1947.

The numbers support the strategy. According to research from the Hackett Group, companies with established supplier diversity programs generate 133% greater return on procurement spending compared to the average business. That is not a feel-good statistic — it reflects the competitive pricing, operational agility, and innovation that diverse suppliers bring to the table when given the opportunity to compete.

What Makes a Business "Woman-Owned"?

A woman-owned business is one where women hold at least 51% ownership, control the management and daily operations, and bear the risk of profit and loss. This is not a self-declaration. Certification programs verify ownership structure, financial records, governance documents, and operational control through a rigorous review process.

The distinction matters for procurement teams because certified woman-owned businesses have been independently validated. When you see a WBENC or SBA WOSB certification, it means the company has documented proof that women own and operate the business — not that a woman's name appears on paperwork while someone else runs operations. Certification bodies conduct site visits, interview principals, review tax returns, and examine corporate bylaws.

At Autac, our ownership story is straightforward. My father, Robert N. Burkle, founded Autac Manufacturing in 1947 right here in North Branford, Connecticut. The company changed hands over the decades, but in 1999 our family returned to take back full ownership. Since then, I have served as CEO, and the company has been 100% woman-owned and operated. We are not a subsidiary, not a partnership arrangement, and not a paper certification. We own the building, the equipment, the inventory, and every decision that comes out of this facility.

Understanding the Certification Landscape

Multiple certification programs exist for woman-owned businesses, and they serve different purposes depending on whether you are pursuing private-sector contracts, federal work, or state and local government procurement. Here is how the major certifications break down.

WBENC (Women's Business Enterprise National Council)

WBENC is the gold standard for private-sector supplier diversity. It is the largest third-party certifier of woman-owned businesses in the United States, and its certification is accepted by most Fortune 500 companies and many large corporations with formal supplier diversity programs. WBENC certification requires documentation of at least 51% woman ownership and full management control, verified through a thorough application process that includes site visits. Over 18,000 companies currently hold WBENC certification.

If your company tracks diverse spend for corporate social responsibility reporting, ESG disclosures, or internal supplier diversity scorecards, WBENC-certified vendors are typically the benchmark your program uses.

SBA WOSB (Women-Owned Small Business)

The U.S. Small Business Administration's Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contracting Program is specifically designed for federal government procurement. It reserves certain federal contracts for WOSBs and Economically Disadvantaged WOSBs (EDWOSBs) in industries where women-owned businesses are underrepresented. Certification is handled through the SBA's online portal and third-party certifiers approved by SBA.

For procurement professionals working on government contracts or subcontracts that flow down federal supplier diversity requirements, WOSB certification is the relevant credential. Many prime contractors on federal projects need diverse subcontractors to meet their own contractual obligations.

State and Local Certifications

Most states operate their own woman-owned or minority/woman-owned business enterprise (M/WBE) certification programs. These are relevant for state government contracts, municipal procurement, and projects funded by state or local agencies. Connecticut, where Autac is headquartered, runs its certification through the Department of Administrative Services (DAS). Many states have reciprocity agreements that accept WBENC or SBA certifications, reducing the administrative burden of maintaining multiple credentials.

Which Certification Matters for Your Organization?

The answer depends on who you are buying for:

• Corporate procurement (Fortune 500, large enterprises) — WBENC certification is typically the accepted standard. Most corporate supplier diversity programs track WBENC-certified spend.
• Federal government contracts and subcontracts — SBA WOSB certification is the relevant credential. Required for set-aside contracts and diverse subcontracting goals.
• State and municipal projects — State-level WBE or M/WBE certification, often with WBENC reciprocity.
• Tier 2 supplier diversity (reporting to a prime contractor) — The prime contractor's program dictates which certification they accept. Most accept WBENC, many also accept SBA WOSB.

Why Procurement Teams Seek Woman-Owned Suppliers

Beyond meeting diversity spend targets, there are concrete operational and strategic reasons procurement teams actively seek woman-owned manufacturers. These are the factors that come up repeatedly in our conversations with supply chain professionals across industries.

Regulatory and Contractual Compliance

Federal contractors are required to establish subcontracting plans that include goals for woman-owned small businesses. FAR (Federal Acquisition Regulation) clause 52.219-9 mandates subcontracting plans for contracts exceeding $750,000 ($1.5 million for construction). Failure to make good-faith efforts toward these goals can affect past performance evaluations and future contract awards. Working with certified woman-owned manufacturers directly supports compliance.

State and local requirements vary, but many jurisdictions have enacted their own diversity procurement mandates. If your customer base includes government agencies or government-funded entities, your ability to demonstrate diverse sourcing is a competitive differentiator in proposals.

Supply Chain Resilience

Diversifying your supplier base is a risk management strategy. Organizations that rely on a small number of large vendors face concentration risk — if one supplier experiences a disruption, it cascades through the entire supply chain. Adding qualified diverse suppliers creates redundancy and optionality.

Smaller, woman-owned manufacturers often offer advantages in disruption scenarios that larger competitors cannot. We can retool production faster, adjust order quantities without bureaucratic approval chains, and communicate directly with the decision-makers — because the decision-maker is the owner. During the supply chain disruptions of 2020-2022, our customers told us repeatedly that our ability to pivot quickly on lead times and production schedules was a major reason they stayed with Autac.

Competitive Pricing and Total Cost of Ownership

Woman-owned manufacturers, particularly those in the small-to-mid-size range, frequently operate with lower overhead than large corporations. No layers of management bureaucracy. No bloated corporate campuses. At Autac, our pricing reflects what it actually costs to manufacture a quality retractile cord in an efficiently run facility — not what a private equity-backed conglomerate needs to charge to service its debt and deliver returns to investors.

Total cost of ownership extends beyond unit price. Factor in responsiveness to engineering changes, willingness to run smaller lot sizes without punitive setup charges, direct access to technical leadership, and the time savings of working with a manufacturer that can make decisions in hours instead of weeks. These factors add up to significant cost advantages over the lifecycle of a supplier relationship.

Innovation and Responsiveness

Large manufacturers optimize for volume. They excel at running long production runs of standardized products. But if your application requires a non-standard configuration, a custom jacket material, an unusual conductor count, or a specialized plug and connector combination, you need a manufacturer that treats custom work as a core capability rather than an inconvenience.

At Autac, custom cord manufacturing is not a side business — it is central to what we do. We maintain a catalog of over 400 standard retractile cord configurations, but a significant portion of our production involves custom specifications. A customer can call us, describe their application, and have a prototype in development the same week. That level of responsiveness is a direct function of our ownership structure: the CEO is involved in engineering discussions, not insulated by six layers of management.

Supplier Diversity in the Electrical and Cable Industry

The electrical cable and cord manufacturing industry is dominated by large, publicly traded companies. When procurement professionals look for diverse suppliers in this space, the options are genuinely limited — particularly for specialized products like retractile cords.

Autac USA is, to our knowledge, the only 100% woman-owned retractile cord manufacturer in the United States. That is not a marketing claim designed to sound impressive — it is a reflection of how concentrated this niche manufacturing segment is. Retractile cord manufacturing requires specialized mandrel-winding equipment, curing ovens, and deep materials science expertise. There are a handful of companies in North America that do this work, and we are the only one that is woman-owned.

For procurement teams in industries that use retractile cords — medical devices, industrial equipment, telecommunications, foodservice, aerospace, defense — this creates a clear opportunity. You can source a critical component from a certified woman-owned manufacturer without compromising on quality, lead time, or technical capability. You get genuine diverse spend on a product you are already buying.

Industries Where This Matters Most

• Medical device manufacturing — Hospital equipment OEMs face pressure from GPOs (Group Purchasing Organizations) and health systems with active supplier diversity programs. Coiled cords for patient monitors, imaging equipment, and surgical tools are a direct fit.
• Defense and aerospace — Federal subcontracting goals for woman-owned small businesses apply across the defense supply chain. Retractile cords in avionics, ground support equipment, and communications systems qualify.
• Automotive and industrial OEMs — Tier 1 suppliers to major automakers and equipment manufacturers increasingly report Tier 2 diverse spend. Coiled cords in assembly line tools, test equipment, and vehicle systems count.
• Telecommunications — Network equipment manufacturers and telecom carriers with supplier diversity commitments can source coiled handset cords, headset cables, and equipment interconnects from a woman-owned manufacturer.
• Foodservice equipment — Commercial kitchen equipment manufacturers serving chain restaurants and institutional foodservice face corporate diversity procurement mandates from their end customers.

How to Evaluate a Woman-Owned Manufacturer

Certification is the starting point, not the finish line. A certification tells you the ownership structure is legitimate. It does not tell you whether the company can deliver on your specific requirements. Here is what to evaluate beyond the certificate.

• Manufacturing capability — Do they make the product in their own facility, or are they a broker reselling someone else's production? Ask for a facility tour or virtual walkthrough. At Autac, every cord we sell is manufactured in our North Branford, Connecticut facility.
• Quality systems — What quality management standards do they follow? Do they maintain documented inspection and testing processes? Ask for quality data on defect rates and on-time delivery performance.
• Technical depth — Can they support custom engineering work? Do they understand the material science behind their products? A manufacturer that can discuss jacket compounds, retractile memory characteristics, and UL listing requirements at a technical level is a manufacturer that controls its own process.
• Financial stability — Certification bodies verify financial information during the certification process, but you should also assess the company's ability to scale with your needs. Ask about capacity, lead times at various volumes, and whether they carry inventory of standard products.
• References — Ask for customer references in your industry. A woman-owned manufacturer that has been serving similar customers for years is a lower-risk choice than one entering your market for the first time.

Autac's Story: 79 Years of American Manufacturing

Autac was founded in 1947 by Robert N. Burkle, who developed the retractile cord manufacturing process and built the company into a recognized name in the coiled cord industry. The name "Autac" is short for "Automatic Action" — a reference to the self-retracting behavior of our cords. Our registered brand, Re-Trak-Tul Kords, has been synonymous with retractile cord quality for decades.

After a period under outside ownership, the Burkle family returned in 1999 to reclaim the company. Since then, I have led Autac as CEO, and the company has been 100% woman-owned. We did not acquire the company to obtain a diversity certification — we came back because this is our family's business, our community, and the manufacturing legacy my father built. The fact that our ownership structure qualifies us as a woman-owned business is a consequence of who we are, not a strategy we adopted.

Today, Autac manufactures retractile cords, coiled cords, and curly cords for customers across the medical, industrial, telecommunications, foodservice, and defense sectors. We maintain a catalog of over 400 standard part numbers and produce custom cords to exact specifications. Every product is manufactured in our facility in North Branford, Connecticut, by a team that has been doing this work — in many cases — for their entire careers.

Our customers include Fortune 500 OEMs, small machine shops, government contractors, and everyone in between. What they share in common is a need for a reliable retractile cord supplier that delivers consistent quality, competitive pricing, and the flexibility to handle both standard orders and custom engineering projects. The fact that they can count that spend toward their supplier diversity goals is an additional benefit — but it is not the reason they stay.

Getting Started with a Woman-Owned Supplier

If your organization is building or expanding its supplier diversity program, here is a practical path forward for the electrical cable and cord category:

1. Audit your current cord and cable spend. Identify which products in your BOM (bill of materials) are retractile cords, coiled cords, or similar products that a specialized manufacturer like Autac could supply.
2. Check your existing supplier diversity commitments. Review your corporate goals, customer contractual requirements, and any government flow-down clauses that require woman-owned business participation.
3. Request a quote. Send us your specifications — part numbers, drawings, or application descriptions — and we will provide pricing, lead times, and any engineering recommendations. No commitment required.
4. Validate the fit. Order samples, evaluate quality, and confirm that our capabilities match your requirements before transitioning volume. We encourage customers to test our products in their applications before committing to production quantities.
5. Register us in your vendor system. Once qualified, add Autac as an approved vendor with the appropriate diverse supplier classification. We provide certification documentation to support your registration process.

Supplier diversity works best when it is treated as a procurement strategy, not a compliance exercise. The goal is to find suppliers who happen to be diverse and deliver the quality, pricing, and service your business requires. At Autac, we have been earning our customers' business on merit for 79 years. The woman-owned certification is real, it is verified, and it is a direct reflection of who runs this company every day.