From ASME San Francisco Section March 1997 Newsletter:

Small Business Report: March 1997
by Eric E. Worrell, P.E., Small Business Committee Chair, ASME Region IX and San Francisco Section

This column, past editions, upcoming small business events, The Small Business and Consultants Referral List and more are on the web at http://www.ccnet.com/~eew/asmesfsb/.

"At the ASME Small Business Forum held as part of the Pacific Design Show in Anaheim on December 4, 1996, a small business group was formed. On January 30, 1997, this group met at the Manhattan Beach County Club to continue networking about mutual business opportunities and the planning of future events.... At present, the group has approximately 30 active members of which 18 were able to attend the Manhattan Beach meeting. The format for the meeting comprised a networking social hour followed by dinner and a presentation: Competitive Products--Methods and Analysis....(by) Dmitry Vernik, a charter member of the group.... Several members indicate that they are already working on collaborative efforts and some non-members are joining ASME. Tentatively, the next meeting will be targeted for the late March-early April time frame."

If your travels take you to the LA/Orange County area, check in with Tosh to find out about ASME small business activities in the area. Phone 818-354-8700, Fax: 818-393-1633, or E-mail: toshio.fujita@jpl.nasa.gov. If you're on the web, the ASME SF Small Biz events listing includes all of Region IX and will lead you to Tosh's full meeting report on the "SoCal" page. You will also find links to the Orange County, Sacramento-Sierra Nevada, Santa Clara Valley, and Silver State sections which have joined the pioneering S.F. Section on the web.

From ASME staff comes the following by forwarded e-mail: "Randi Kurtz in the Member Services department is researching the viability of a small business directory." For examples, Region IX has referred her to our Small Business and Consultants Referral List and the long list of the IEEE Orange County Consultants Network (http://www.occn.org/) along with a reminder to include our many members who are not on-line). Send your (friendly) suggestions and encouragement to, Ms. Randi Kurtz ASME International, 345 East 47th Street, m/s 5D, New York, NY 10017. Phone: (212) 705-8237, Fax: (212) 705-7437, E-mail: kurtzr@asme.org. A c.c. sent this direction would be appreciated. Better yet, fill out the on-line Small Business Survey to really show your interest.

Our Small Business Member of the Month for March is Sam Burd, P.E. of Burd Consulting. Sam applies technical expertise in key areas including fluidics, microfluidics, optical interface, and plastics while working with clients to develop designs for mainly biotechnical and medical applications. His skills and services range from initial design conceptualization to guiding the transition to successful production.

As keys to building consulting success, Sam points to word of mouth referrals and successful working relationships. Recommendations from people who know his work have brought most of his new business since he first consulted part-time in 1975 and as he has developed a full time business over the past several years.

For Sam, the ideal client company can use a variety of his talents. One good way to start projects is to ease into a relationship by performing tasks that are just a part of a client's project. As he and the client get to know each other, partial tasks evolve into full project assignments. By working closely with the client and finding projects where he can best add value, Sam ensures continued and future business. Added business comes in as satisfied clients tell their friends.

You can reach Sam Burd, P.E. at Burd Consulting, 2115 Magellan Dr., Oakland, CA 94611. Phone: (510)339-8463 Fax: (510)339-8409, E-mail: sam@burdconsulting.com. He's on the web at http://burdconsulting.com.

Even in a Fortune 500 company, much less in a small business, keeping standards on hand, just in case you need them, can be cost prohibitive. Ordering them from the developing body, when you find that you need them, can take far more longer than you can wait. A high quality standout, amongst my recent junk mail, promises a solution. The Document Center, Inc. stores over 500,000 current and out-of-date standards with rights to duplicate and distribute them. (ASME only allows rights to out-dated versions.) Their December newsletter touts a reputation for personal service, low prices and fast delivery on standards they stock -- within hours by fax if that's needed. Their web site catalog lists other standards that they will order to save you the hassle. Contact Document Center, Inc., 1504 Industrial Way, Unit 9, Belmont, CA 94002. Phone (415) 591-7600; Fax (415) 591-7600, E-mail: info@doccenter.com. On the web at http://www.doccenter.com/doccenter/.

Now for a "freebie" -- taken from the January 15 ASME Capitol Update: "UPDATED GUIDE TO NIST AVAILABLE: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has updated its "Guide to NIST," a "one stop" information resource available to those interested in the agency and its industrial partnership opportunities. The 164-page guide describes hundreds of different research projects, grants, industry outreach programs, services, and facilities.... For a FREE printed copy, send a self-addressed mailing label to NIST Public and Business Affairs, A903 Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-0001 or fax requests to (301) 926-1630. An electronic version of the "Guide to NIST" will be on-line later this year at http://www.nist.gov." (Current and past issues of the Capitol Update are available at http://www.asme.org/gric/).

As always, if you have comments or input for small business activities, this column or the small business web site, please contact me at: Eric E. Worrell, P.E., The Ergonomic Energy Works, PO Box 271923, Concord, CA 94527-1923, Phone/Fax (510) 689-4579, eew@eew.com.

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