Laughlin Air Force Base connects with contractors at annual Industry Day

About 50 local businesspeople filled XL Landings on Laughlin Air Force Base as the 47th Contracting Squadron used its third annual Industry Day to push future work into the open and give Val Verde County firms a better shot at bidding before requirements are locked in.

The April 21 event brought together 25 companies interested in doing more business with Laughlin, along with base contracting staff and private-sector partners. The gathering was organized by the 47th Contracting Squadron with the Northwest Texas APEX Accelerator, and it was built around a simple economic goal: connect local contractors with the base sooner, cut procurement lead time, show upcoming opportunities and increase competition.

That matters in Del Rio and throughout Val Verde County because Laughlin is one of the region’s biggest economic anchors. The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts reported that the base had 3,043 direct employees in 2023, including 1,309 active-duty military personnel, and estimated that Laughlin’s population contributed at least $1.7 billion to the Texas economy that year.

The event at XL Landings, Building 472 on 7th St., was scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Attendees were asked to bring identification, business cards and capability statements, a sign that the day was aimed at companies ready to move from introductions to actual procurement discussions. Rich Lyles and Brandy Reed were listed by the Northwest Texas APEX Accelerator as presenters on government contracting.

Karina Gloria, a contracting specialist with the 47th Contracting Squadron, opened the event. Jesus Perez, the squadron’s director of business operations, also addressed the room, and Lt. Col. Matthew Thorne, the contracting squadron commander, spoke with business leaders during the program. The base described the accelerator partnership as a bridge between the military mission and private-sector capability, a relationship that can matter for contractors chasing work tied to maintenance, construction, professional services and vendor support.

Laughlin’s Industry Day has become a recurring part of that outreach. The first Small Business Industry Day, held April 26, 2024, brought more than 25 local and small businesses on base. Laughlin later said attendance doubled at its 2025 event.

The pattern shows how the base is trying to make its needs visible earlier, not just announce awards after the fact. For local firms in a county where Laughlin covers about 4,570 acres and sits roughly six miles east of Del Rio, that early visibility can mean the difference between watching contracts from the outside and lining up to compete for them.