MANCHESTER — A visit to the White House today is one of the highlights for U.S. SBA award winners from New Hampshire celebrating Small Business Week in the nation’s capital.

“The networking has been great; we’ve met a lot of wonderful people,” Linda S. Richardson, president of Richardson Electrical Co. Inc. in Seabrook, said in a telephone interview. The SBA named Richardson as the New England Subcontractor of the Year.

“We’re learning about even more SBA programs that are available to us,” she said. Of particular help has been the SBA’s Surety Bond Guarantee program, she said.

Richardson, whose daughter, Sara Richardson, 27, is the fifth generation to join the family business, noted the firm was founded in 1899. Like her father, Vaughan Richardson, Sara is an electrical engineer. Freda Richardson, Vaughan’s mother, is retired but remains a minority stockholder.

The business moved to New Hampshire from Waltham, Mass., about 20 years ago. Its workers are members of the IBEW union.

Also visiting Washington, Abhijit (Nannu) Nobis, chief executive officer of Nobis Engineering Inc. in Concord, and the SBA N.H. Small Business Person of the Year, said he enjoyed the reception at the State Department Monday night.

Since its founding in 1998, Nobis Engineering has turned to the SBA for assistance, making use of expert advice from SCORE and borrowing with SBA-guaranteed loans.

The Section 8A Business Development Program, which promotes direct contracting with government agencies, “really helped us to grow the business and scale up,” Nobis said.

“We certainly had our ups and downs, and we are looking forward to continue to grow the business over the next several years,” he said.

Bob Nelson, SBA acting regional administrator for New England, said Nobis’ contributions to the community helped win it recognition. He noted Nobis donates up to 5 percent of annual profits to charity and allows its employees 24 hours of paid time each year to volunteer.

Speaking of Richardson Electrical, Nelson said, “Back in the 1970s, they at one point built, repaired or modified every major wastewater treatment plant in New England.”

National winners

Victoria Tifft, president and CEO of Clinical Research Management Inc. in Hinckley, Ohio, was named 2012 National Small Business Person of the Year by Karen Mills, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

First runner-up was Darrin Swanson, president, CEO and co-founder of Kit Masters Inc., and Swan Machine LLC, in Perham, Minn. Second runner-up was Michael Cote, president and founder of Look’s Gourmet Food Co. of Whiting, Maine.