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* June 2007 : Article by Christina Rexrode of the St. Petersburg Times on Space Tech

NEED A BIG SOLUTION? PICK NASA'S BRAINS
[STATE Edition]

Rocket science lends some of its expertise to small businesses needing high-tech answers.

Ed Kozlowski Jr. didn't want to shutter his beloved glass studio just because his electric bills were soaring.

But Kozlowski, who runs Budda Belly Glass Studio, was shelling out almost $2,000 a month to power his glass-blowing furnace, which is attached to the back of his Pinellas Park house. He knew he needed a stronger type of insulation for the furnace, but couldn't find anything that did the job.

He needed a rocket scientist.

And fortunately, the premier depository of rocket scientists - the U.S. space program - was willing to help.

The Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program, or SATOP for short, connects small businesses that face technological problems with experts who try to solve them. After a company submits a request for help, SATOP matches it with a scientist or engineer from a NASA center or a connected university or company, such as the University of Central Florida or Lockheed Martin.

SATOP, with offices in Florida, Texas, New Mexico and New York, is funded by NASA headquarters in Washington. But the brainpower comes free of charge: The scientists in SATOP's network will volunteer up to 40 hours to figure out a company's problem.

"There's no catch," said Chris Gilfriche, who runs SATOP's Florida division in Melbourne. "We're just here to help."

SATOP helped Kozlowski, for instance, by recommending an insulation called FiberFrax, which isn't sold in the home- improvement stores he had been scouring.

He estimates that he's saving $300 to $400 a month on his electric bill as a result.

"If it's good enough for the shuttle, it's good enough for my furnace," Kozlowski said.

For all its altruism, the 12-year-old SATOP also serves as a public relations campaign, demonstrating to the public that NASA has worthy effects outside the confines of space exploration - besides the old Velcro and Gore-Tex examples.

"The thought process is that you as a taxpayer have contributed a lot of money to get NASA started, and now it's an opportunity for NASA to give back," said Mike Monahan, a vice president at the Upper Tampa Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce. He's recommended SATOP to about a dozen companies.

Added Gilfriche: "We're trying to make people understand that the space program is more than launching a shuttle once in a while."

D.J. LaDez, the general manager for Lumedyne Inc. in Port Richey, calls SATOP his lifesaver. About seven years ago, his company was creating flash units for digital cameras but couldn't find a compatible high-speed switch after the switches they had been using were discontinued.

LaDez says he lost sleep for two years over the mystery; more than 60 percent of his sales come from the flash units.

"It was terrifying," he said.

In stepped SATOP, and within a month, an electrical engineer at Houston's United Space Alliance determined that a stronger "off" signal would make the flash units compatible with a range of switches.

LaDez said he was impressed by the SATOP engineer's commitment to solving Lumedyne's problem. The engineers at the companies that manufacture the switches had long before given up, he said.

Dale Hawker, president of Rubber Resources Ltd. in Hudson, praised the program as accessible and efficient.

He turned to SATOP for advice on the best way to dry color onto the rubber mulch he manufactures from old tires. "The math books that I rely on were running out of gas," he explained.

Gilfriche, the SATOP director, said his volunteers enjoy helping businesses because it's a break from their normal projects, which can take years to yield results. "It's like, 'Hey, all this stuff I know suddenly can be applied to something different,' " he said.

Besides its wealth of knowledge, NASA also can offer companies access to expensive, specialized equipment.

Dais Analytic Corp. sought out SATOP because it "had access to a supercomputer and the software to run it," said Scott Ehrenberg, the company's chief technology officer.

The Odessa company asked SATOP to use a supercomputer to analyze the air flow of its main commercial product, ConsERV, which is used with heating, air-conditioning and ventilation systems. It reworked the product's design as a result.

SATOP assists about 500 companies every year, but requests for help must meet a number of guidelines.

For instance, the application from a man who wanted to build a helicopter to carry 300 people was rejected.

"We try not to discourage anyone," Gilfriche said, "but we try to explain to people why some ideas might not work - laws of physics and things like that."

Christina Rexrode can be reached at crexrode@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8318.

See for yourself

Chris Gilfriche, the director of SATOP Florida, will be speaking to the Pasco Manufacturers Council at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Seven Springs Golf and Country Club, 3535 Trophy Blvd., New Port Richey. RSVP to the Pasco Economic Development Council: (813) 926-0827.

Florida businesses that have benefited

Nationwide, SATOP helps about 500 companies a year. Here are the stories of a few Florida businesses that have mined the brainpower of its scientists in the past few years:

Cookson Hills Family Ministries of Florida, Seffner: The facilities, which provide housing for troubled children from across the state, were repeatedly being struck by lightning. SATOP found problems with the electrical panels in two buildings and recommended that Cookson Hills install copper poles and wire cables on the rooftops to prevent direct lightning strikes.

Hampton Inn and Suites, Tarpon Springs: Shortly after the hotel opened, it was plagued by a resilient form of mildew. SATOP found the culprits: two rooftop fans that were drawing hot, humid air into the walls. After the fans were put on timers so that they no longer ran continuously, the mildew problem disappeared.

Creative Crystal, Sarasota: The company's gem- and stud-setting machine would consistently overheat, and neither the manufacturer nor the distributor would honor the machine's warranty. SATOP found that the machine's vacuum pump had been running on the wrong oil and at the wrong frequency.

Nacon Technologies, Niceville: This R&D company created a pest- control device that attracts insects with a reflective material and then traps them, instead of electrocuting them. But the reflective material that the company was using, a polished aluminium plate, is expensive. SATOP recommended "space tape," or Mylar-aluminized film, as a replacement. It has a very reflective surface and is used on flight hardware that is exposed to the sun.

Source: SATOP

What is SATOP?

The Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program is a network of NASA centers and about 50 companies and universities that are connected to NASA, such as Lockheed Martin, the Boeing Co. or the University of Central Florida. SATOP's Florida division, in Melbourne, was created in 1995. It now has branches in Texas, New Mexico and New York. Learn more at www.spacetechsolutions.com.

How does it work?

When SATOP accepts a request for help, it matches the company with a scientist or engineer who will volunteer up to 40 hours to solve the company's technological problem. Usually, the volunteers work by e-mail, fax and phone. SATOP says it tries to resolve problems within 90 days.

What are the restrictions?

Only small businesses (fewer than 500 employees) can request help, and requests must focus on a specific problem. SATOP won't deal with problems with e-mail, IT or software, or ones that can be readily solved by the private sector.

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