Stennis Space Center, MS -- The Mississippi Enterprise for Technology (MsET) once again
successfully graduated a tenant company from its Business Incubator at
Stennis Space Center. Diamond Data Systems of Mississippi stepped out
on its own this month after residing as an incubator company since 2003.
The
company\'s basis for graduation is that its funding level grew to more
than $1 million annually. After only 3 years as an incubator company,
Diamond Data Systems of Mississippi Director Keith Alphonso said that
the company\'s success is due in large part to the incubator\'s support.
"It
is very helpful to be located at Stennis during these early years. We
are local to our Navy customers and the incubator has provided a great
cost savings to us," Alphonso said.
He also indicated that simply being affiliated with the MsET Business Incubator has been an asset to the company\'s success.
"The
relationships we\'ve developed with other MsET and Stennis companies
has been a factor in the additional contracts Diamond Data Systems has
won since locating to Stennis Space Center," he said.
Diamond
Data Systems of Mississippi is a subsidiary of Diamond Data Systems of
New Orleans. The 10-person company opened in Mississippi as an
Information Technology company specializing in meteorology and
oceanography. The company has contracts providing web-based data
integration work to the Commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography
Command (CNMOC) and the Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVO), both located
at Stennis.
One lucrative contract Diamond Data Systems
secured since becoming an MsET Business Incubator tenant is supporting
the Oceanographic Enterprise Portal for CNMOC. For the past 2 years,
the company has consolidated meteorlogic and oceanographic data from
more than 50 web sites into one portal environment. Alphonso said this
one contract has been instrumental in elevating Diamond Data Systems\'
annual funding above the $1 million mark.
Now that Diamond Data
Systems has graduated, the company will remain on-site at Stennis as an
MsET tenant. The location to its clients and the business relationships
remain a large factor for doing business at Stennis.
"We see a
positive future for Diamond Data Systems in Mississippi," Alphonso
said. "We plan to use Stennis Space Center as an anchor point to grow
the company nationwide."
The goal of the MsET Business Incubator
is to provide 3 years of service to high-tech, start-up companies. MsET
Vice President Charlie Beasley said that Diamond Data Systems is a
textbook example of a company that utilized the services of the
Business Incubator to its greatest advantage.
"This is what we
like to see from an incubator company, to become self-sustaining and to
remain in Mississippi," Beasley said. "MsET couldn\'t be more pleased
to graduate Diamond Data Systems. We are confident the company will
continue to prosper and to provide the highest level of services to its
clients."
To learn more about the MsET Business Incubator, contact MsET at (800) 746-7699, or visit the web site at www.mset.org. To find out more about Diamond Data Systems of Mississippi, contact Keith Alphonso at 228-688-3145 or visit the web site at www.diamonddata.com.
