One of a kind – Missoula engineering firm, Access Consulting specializes in mixing sophisticated technology requirements with structural needs

Structural engineering and information technology may seem an odd couple in the world of the construction business, but Paul DeWolfe has developed a unique company that combines the two and offers its customers consulting on a whole new level.

By TINA GOODRICH for the Missoulian In Picture the Progress ’03

Access Consulting http://www.access-consulting.net/ owner Paul DeWolfe’s company designs telecommunication networks nationwide, but he says he prefers to work in the Northwest.

“There is not another engineering firm in Montana that does what we do,” said DeWolfe, founder and owner of Access Consulting, a four-year-old business based in Missoula. “We are the only professional engineering company that does this kind of consulting.”

DeWolfe said his training as an engineer and his experience in IT prepared him for a niche that is evolving into a high-demand service. His work involves designing and preparing specifications for building sites that require sophisticated technical attention such as in telecommunications, Internet access and satellite television.

“One of our trademarks is finding the right mix of technologies,” he said.

DeWolfe has a master’s degree in structural engineering from Southern California University. He acquired his IT knowledge in California working for 14 years with Rockwell Industries, which works under contract with the National Aeronautic Space Administration’s shuttle program. He said he was initially hired as an engineer for Rockwell but it wasn’t long before he was involved in the technological aspect of the shuttle project.

He does business throughout the country, he said, but he tends to stay more in the Northwest. He has wide-ranging projects in Montana, including the University of Montana’s information technology master plan, and the Helena public schools’ telephone system.

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ACCESS Consulting, PC

265 West Front Street

Missoula, MT 59802

406-327-0629

406-541-9881 (fax)

[email protected]

http://www.access-consulting.net/

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A lot of his projects are in remote locations, which include sites miles away from main roads and small towns. He’s done work at banks in rural communities, but the majority of his remote work seems to be with the hospitality industry, he said. One of his latest projects involved a “very high-end” executive retreat in Vermont. He designed and consulted with contractors so each of the individual cottages was equipped with sophisticated Internet and telecommunications capabilities.

DeWolfe pointed out that Missoula is actually considered a rural location in the realm of telecommunications technology nationwide. But he’s impressed at the number of high-speed Internet providers that have opened shop in the area in just the last couple of years. He foresees that the level of technology available will increase greatly in the next decade.

Access Consulting, which has three full-time and two part-time employees, also works to make sure there are technicians available to maintain the technology that the firm designs and oversees. DeWolfe said that his firm does maintenance to a limited extent. But for the most part, he makes sure the vendors have certified technicians to take care of problems and to keep up on upgrades.

DeWolfe is happy to be living and working in Missoula. After moving from California, he was hired on at Gordon, Prill and Drapes, a Missoula engineering firm. He worked at GPD for five years before striking out on his own with Access Consulting. Just as a lot of business people in Montana, DeWolfe moved to Missoula because his wife Ellen is from the area, and he was interested in a different lifestyle than California could offer.

“It was all right when I was single. But when I had children, that was a different ballgame.” Moving to Montana, he said, also allowed for better schools for his two daughters.

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