New Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood Serves Expanding Space Needs of Mimlitary Contractors and Suppliers
September 04, 2002

The University of Missouri Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood, the first technology park in the nation to be located on an active Army post, opens its first office building to tenants this month (September). The park is a project of the University of Missouri and the Missouri Department of Economic Development with the backing of Fort Leonard Wood, a U.S. Army post.  The $2 million, 18,000-square-foot building is jointly financed by the University of Missouri System and the Department of Economic Development through its subsidiary, the Missouri Technology Corporation.

The new technology park helps solve the long-standing issue of where to station contractors and suppliers who serve the military. Historically, military contractors have set up offices and cubicles in backrooms of military buildings already stretched for space.  The 62-acre business park provides office space and other facilities for Army contractors and suppliers, as well as other federal, state and local government agencies.

Given the events of September 11th, the need for space to accommodate military contractors at Fort Leonard Wood is rapidly growing.  Fort Leonard Wood is the Army’s only training facility for humanitarian demining, and also conducts training for homeland security and counter-terrorism.  Despite being an Army installation, the post conducts training for all branches of the U.S. military and even military personnel from other countries.

“This technology park will be a model for other military bases,” said Angela Lieb of OffiStart Business Centers, who worked as a consultant on the project.  “It was a great idea a year or so ago when we started discussions, but now it’s a really important idea.  This park provides a home base and security for companies supporting the military mission.”    

Just as notable as the technology park concept is the way the planners structured space in the new office building, a boon to up-and-coming military contractors.  Rather than leasing separate office suites, the planners created a shared office environment.  Although the concept of shared office space or executive suites has been around since the 1960s, it has found a new niche on this Army post, Lieb said.

Contractors and suppliers who work with the military may have long-term contracts and require an ongoing presence, or they may simply need to stop in once a month.  The shared office concept tailors resources to meet all of these circumstances with relative ease, with leases as short as three months.  In addition, businesses that want nothing more than a mailing address and somewhere to plug in their laptop when making a sales call to the post can arrange for “virtual office space,” taking advantage of the location and amenities without actually leasing an office.        

Companies lease just the office space they need -- fully furnished and technologically equipped -- and share 6,000 square feet of additional space and services, including a receptionist area, conference rooms, cafe and advanced office equipment such as the copiers and fax machines.  A T-1 line will provide high speed data links for all tenants.

“Although a company might take just a 200-square-foot office, they’re actually getting a tremendous amount of shared space,” said Lieb.  “This environment is perfect for military contractors and suppliers who need to ramp up operations quickly.”

In fact, entrepreneurs can establish an immediate presence on the post with a “virtual office,” which is essentially an address and phone number, and “virtual assistants” who provide professional administrative support via phone, email and fax.   As space requirements expand, they can move up to a furnished office or team room.  Finally, they can transition into more conventional space in a second building, which will be completed by Spring, 2003.

A shared administrative staff answers calls and provide services to all the businesses within the office center.  Phone and high-speed internet access are set up individually to meet each company’s specific needs and requirements.  Private offices, team rooms and large training rooms are available options.

The park concept began when the University of Missouri Office of Economic Development and Research Parks contracted the Missouri Enterprise Business Assistance Center to conduct a market research study, which illustrated a need for office space in the region.  Millions of dollars in federal contracts flow through the Post each year and the military must provide contractors with the access needed to do their jobs.

“They knew they needed to provide the space.  How to do it was the next question,” said Lieb.  “Most companies aren’t going to be moving their home offices to St. Robert, Missouri, but this does offer them the ability to have a private, closed office, someone to answer their phones, get their mail, all of those tools at their finger tips.  It’s very exciting.”

The University of Missouri Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood is managed by Rick Finholt, executive director of the office of Economic Development and Research Parks, who also manages the University of Missouri’s Missouri Research Park located in St. Charles County, Missouri.

The Missouri Research Park is the first business park in the St. Louis region to market exclusively to technology-intensive and research-based companies, and now has a total of 1,100,000 square feet under roof.  The Missouri Research Park is a project of the University of Missouri Office of Economic Development and Research Parks, whose mission is to support Missouri’s economic growth by developing and sustaining research and technology alliances among the University, government agencies and private companies.  

or more information on either the Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood or the Missouri Research Park, call (636) 441-7701 or visit the MRP web site at www.um-mrp.org.  For information on OffiStart, call (314) 862-2500 or visit www.offistart.com.