Entrepreneur's software helps in site selection

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Jul 26, 2002 by Dickinson, Casey J

SYRACUSE - Making big deals is an art for some but a science for entrepreneur Rhett Weiss, founder of Dealtek, Ltd. Dealtek has developed a Web-based software tool, known as DEALS that helps corporate site selectors and economic development agencies compare sites for development, expansion, and location. The program uses a number of relevant data points, such as tax rates, employment levels, energy costs, and salaries to model development scenarios.

"DEALS doesn't give a 'right or wrong' answer," says Weiss, "the numbercrunching isn't judgmental."

As a New York-based attorney who worked on corporate site selection, Weiss found a need for a technological tool that would help him keep track of several simultaneous projects. When he later moved to Virginia to work in an accounting firm's site-selection department, the partners assured him he would have the newest in computer tools for his work.

"The technology was the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet," says Weiss.

While working for the accounting firm, Weiss decided to try and develop his own software to help evaluate development sites. He started his own consulting firm three years ago while investigating the feasibility of creating a program to cover the "what-if?" aspect of the fluid process of locating a new business.

"Projects are like moving targets," says Weiss, chairman and CEO of Dealtek, Ltd., "things are always changing."

Not a technical person, Weiss found the software expertise he sought at Syracuse Research Corp. spin-off, Purplewire LLC. A staff of 12 engineers created the DEALS program incorporating Weiss' dealmaking criteria. Weiss relocated his own company from Virginia to Syracuse's One MONY Plaza in order to be closer to software development team. Purplewire had to work through issues such as whether to make the program as software for sale or as a subscriptionbased application hosted on a server, says Jay Mortensen, chief technology officer for Purplewire, LLC.

Dealtek opted to host its DEALS application on Purplewire's server because of the ease of updating the program.

"By using the ASP model, we can avoid problems with updates and support," says Mortensen.

More than 100 testers across the nation helped fine tune DEALS during its beta stage, says Weiss.

Accessed via the Dealtek Web page (deals.dealtek.com), DEALS program allows site selectors to enter data for a particular project and compare different locations in the United States to see which site makes the best economic sense. The software contains demographic, economic, and tax information for every county in the nation. The information is updated regularly from databases and user input, says Weiss. An online demonstration shows potential subscribers exactly what DEALS can do for them.

Officially launched in May, DEALS has two dozen subscribers from the public and private sector, including some international users. The lowest cost subscription, for nonprofit organizations such as economic-development agencies, costs $2,500 per year. For that price, a single user can access the system and model up to 50, different projects. One of the largest companies subscribing to the service is currently modeling a $350-million factor project using DEALS, says Weiss.

The DEALS program is also used as a competitive tool, Weiss explains. Some users model their competitors' projects to get a better view of the competition's business.

The Onondaga County Office of Economic Development is a subscriber to DEALS, says Gregory Hitchin, business development manager for the office. The office plans to use DEALS to show development prospects how the county rates versus its competitors, he adds.

"DEALS is a good way for us to present our story in a competitive sense," says Hitchin.

Dealtek has two patent applications pending for developments in the DEALS program, says Weiss. One application is for the DEALS decision-making process, while the other covers aspects of the software itself.