A company seeking to obtain a Confidential, Secret, or Top Secret facility clearance (a.k.a facility security clearance) must be sponsored for it by a federal government agency or another company that already has a facility clearance. A company cannot simply apply for a facility security clearance of its own accord. However, in most cases it is unnecessary to obtain a facility security clearance before winning a contract that requires the FCL. Rather, the company is first awarded the contract and then it gets the facility clearance when the agency or cleared company sponsors the contractor for the FCL.
In some cases, though, bidders will need access to classified information to prepare their bids on a classified contract. In those cases, companies must possess a facility clearance at the required level to bid on the contract. If a company interested in bidding on such a contract does not already possess a facility clearance, it may be able to persuade the prime contractor or federal agency to sponsor it for a facility security clearance so that it may prepare a bid.
If you would like consulting assistance with this, or have other related questions or concerns, please contact us. The first discussion is free of charge and can often clarify matters significantly. We also offer other, comprehensive security consulting services related to facility security clearances.