| "Businesses are on a really tight time frame--they need information the day before yesterday. That's what we're set up to do." |
If knowledge is power, then Wisconsin TechSearch is one heck of a battery.
Wisconsin TechSearch, the information outreach program of the college's Kurt F. Wendt Library, is the information "branch" of hundreds of companies and businesses in Wisconsin and across the U.S. Wisconsin TechSearch (WTS) fields about 25,000 inquiries a year for manufacturers, chemical companies, law firms and many others.
What do these companies want to know? According to WTS director Leonard F. Black, every request is different and the answers are essentially custom tailored. "Sometimes they want to know who the major players are in a particular emerging technology," he says. "Other times it will be a patent or trademark search; or a literature search for something purely technical. People also call asking where to find something, especially smaller companies that don't have much of a research budget. It can even be a combination package of several things."
There are even calls from people who don't quite know what they want, and WTS can help them too, says Black. "We try to get to the nature of the information they want--is it just technical or do they want patent information, intellectual property issues, etc. Or is it a combination of that plus marketing information."
In its 30-plus years of service, WTS has earned a reputation for being both thorough and cost efficient. Borregaard LignoTech is a small international specialty chemicals company and leader in lignin-based technology, with U.S. headquarters in Rothschild, Wisconsin. LignoTech now contracts with WTS for all its literature and patent searching. Says LignoTech research associate Kevin Wirtz, "We had used another company for our research. We found that we couldn't get consistent results with their searches. They did not always check all the data bases, and we had to steer them in the right direction. When we compared their service with TechSearch, we were getting more hits without having to tell them where to go." WTS service is far less expensive than their old search service, Wirtz adds.
Wisconsin TechSearch director Leonard F. Black.
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Many companies rely on WTS to save time. "We basically sell time, says Black. "Even in cases where they might know how to search for something, they might not want to spend the time. Businesses are on a really tight time frame--they need information the day before yesterday. That's what we're set up to do."
TechSearch can play an important role in company decision making, according to Bob Mortensen, a product development manager at SSI Technologies, a small manufacturer of sensors in Janesville, Wisconsin. "We subscribe to TechSearch's monthly literature search service and have found this incredibly helpful. The patent and lit searches help us see where our competition is headed and help us avoid pitfalls like infringements." For example, Mortensen recalls that the company was considering developing a new product and requested a literature search by TechSearch. "The search uncovered that one of our competitors was developing a very similar product and was two or three steps ahead of us in development. Knowing this, we quickly refined our strategy."
The service has been a real time saver for Mortensen, who says he used to glean this type of information through his own reading and research efforts. "But you only have so much time to read, and it's easy to miss something. TechSearch is very thorough--they search the material and filter out exactly what I need."
Another Wisconsin company, Rust Environment and Infrastructure, is also a fan of Wisconsin TechSearch. Corporate services librarian Ione Prange has a 10-year relationship with TechSearch. "I've nothing but praise for TechSearch," she says. "They are efficient, accurate and timely. Sometimes I will call and say 'I don't think you'll be able to find this' and they often can."
One of the keys to TechSearch's success is its ability to tailor its service to the needs of individual companies. Service can be provided on a regular basis--such as a monthly update on a particular subject area--or a single search on a topic. "We help determine what people need within their budget," says Black. "We'll ask people what they want to spend on a search and we negotiate from there. Also, we try to get back to people within 24-48 hours. Our experienced staff enables us to do this.
"We put a face on the university for many industry people. Sometimes they need help and call this gigantic institution and don't know where to start. We are a hook to hang their needs on."
LignoTech plans to continue using TechSearch for its information needs because of convenience and cost effectiveness, says Wirtz. "If we have a new area in which we're trying to develop a product, TechSearch is indispensable. Knowledge is important--you need to be able to access it quickly. Research staffs in companies are not as large now as they used to be. You have to make sure every hour of work is an effective hour. Lenny is an expert and great to work with. He can do searches rapidly whereas it would take us so much more time. It lets us focus on our strengths."
--By Karen Walsh--
| For further information, please contact: |
Leonard F. Black, 608/262-5913
black@engr.wisc.edu
