Norcal APEX Accelerator
SORA Engineering
“[Norcal] APEX Accelerator was an amazing resource to SORA Engineering. They helped me in the early days with the formation of the company and provided amazing advice on how to market, write proposals, and win work! With their guidance, SORA Engineering has been able to win multiple contracts in just the first year of business! Thank you Norcal APEX Accelerator!”

SORA Engineering is a civil engineering consulting firm located in Oakland, CA. Rishi Patel founded SORA Engineering in 2023 to put his 20+ years of experience as a Civil Engineer to work for his own business. Rishi initially reached out to Norcal APEX Accelerator to get support with his contracting certifications and registrations after trying to register in SAM.gov for the first time. |
challenges
When SORA Engineering initially reached out for assistance, they were focused on getting their firm positioned to do business with state, federal, and transportation agencies. They knew they would have to register in the federal System for Awards Management (SAM), CaleProcure, and local transportation agencies first and foremost. They would then work towards their government contracting certifications. It would be a challenge to get started as a small business but SORA Engineering was supported and had developed a game plan to begin securing contracts – they knew subcontracting was their way in.
actions
After connecting for the first time at an in-person DBE certification workshop, SORA Engineering and Norcal APEX Accelerator met over Zoom to discuss their procurement goals. After their first meeting, SORA Engineering began working towards their registrations in SAM, CaleProcure, and with the transportation agencies in the Bay Area. They worked closely with their Norcal APEX Accelerator counselor to complete their SAM and CaleProcure registrations and learned how they could search for subcontracting opportunities on these platforms. As their registrations were finalized, they began working towards their Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), CA-Small Business (SB), and CA-SB for Public Works certifications to support their subcontracting goals. While attending networking events, webinar trainings, and getting their certifications and registrations in order, SORA Engineering had been eyeing solicitations and preparing to submit their first bid.
results
SORA Engineering’s patience and preparation served them well when a subcontracting opportunity with AECOM came up. With all their pieces in place, and with Norcal APEX Accelerator in their corner, SORA Engineering was able to successfully bid on and win a subcontract from AECOM to work alongside them on a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) project. SORA Engineering looks forward to more contracts and plans to grow its business to capture more contracts.
If you have more questions, please contact us at info@apexnorcal.org or (707) 267 – 7561