NEW REPORT SHOWS TECHNOLOGY OUTREACH PROGRAM INFUSES
$47 MILLION INTO ECONOMY FOR EVERY $1 MILLION SPENT

TITUSVILLE, Fla. - Figures outlined in an in-depth economic impact analysis presented to the Florida legislature in March reports that for every $1 million spent on the Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program (SATOP) since 1997, over $47 million in new business will go to Florida companies and employees by the year 2001. Richard Weisskoff, Ph.D., a Harvard-trained economist and professor at the University of Miami's School of International Studies, compiled the report.
 
Using economic modeling software called IMPLAN (Impact Analysis for Planning), Weisskoff calculated the total impact of SATOP assistance on the Florida economy for three different time periods, depending on the approximate number of years required to produce the reported impacts. The assumed number of years varied from one to four, with four years representing the most conservative estimate.

"Since only one-third of the companies provided actual quantitative estimates, we approached the company responses that underlie our impact analysis with caution and skepticism," Weisskoff said. "Nevertheless, the brief description of the companies' experiences, as well as the startling figures reported by a wide variety of firms in a wide variety of activities, all suggest that there is something truly amazing happening for Florida with this program," he said.

According to Weisskoff's report, the SATOP, will have generated 421 new jobs and infuse a total of $47.9 million into the Florida economy by the year 2001 - a four-year time period. Of this $47.9 million, new wages and salaries will account for $14.6 million, company profits for $5.1 million, indirect business taxes for $1.3 million and materials and services purchased from other firms for $26.8 million.
The SATOP operates on a $1 million budget -- $300,000 from Florida taxpayers, $300,000 matching grants from NASA and approximately $400,000 in time and labor put forth by 30 + space industry partners.

Weisskoff's analysis utilized data collected from a July 1999 independent study that examined the direct effect SATOP assistance had on the client companies. Of the 95 client companies who participated in the original study, 29 of these companies provided actual numerical estimates on the impact of the program on their business. These companies reported the number of new jobs that were, or would be, created as a result of the SATOP assistance, plus those current jobs that were or would be saved due to the program.

"The economic impact analysis took the 1999 interview survey one step further by computing the direct, indirect and induced impacts of the program on Florida's economy," Weisskoff said. "Direct impact" refers to the increase in business activity of the SATOP clients. "Indirect impact" refers to the increase in business activity of those companies who supply SATOP clients with goods and services. "Induced impact" refers to the increased activity due to the spending of the wages and salaries of SATOP clients and their suppliers in Florida.

The SATOP is a free service designed to speed the transfer of space technology to the private sector by giving free technological assistance to small businesses to help them solve their problems and increase their chances of succeeding. Volunteers from 30 private sector companies, universities, colleges and NASA centers (NASA-Kennedy Space Center in Florida; NASA-Johnson Space Center in Texas; NASA-White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico) donate their time and expertise in solving the challenges brought forth by the inquiring businesses. Florida's Technological Research and Development Authority (TRDA) administer the program.

For more information on the Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program, contact the TRDA at (321) 269-6330 or visit their Web site at www.trda.org.