When counselors with the Small Business Development Center Network need help, they can turn to a group of tech-savvy researchers working in offices at the University of Texas at San Antonio Downtown campus.

These researchers can produce customized reports, market analysis, patent searches and demographic charts and maps to aid counselors across the nation as they work with small businesses trying to start up or expand. And it is all free - at least for the various counselors who work for the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network. The service is funded directly through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).