With the majority of its client base in the telecommunications business (broadcasting, radio and t.v., cellular and the like), Radio Frequency Safety International, or more commonly  known as RSI Corporation, is a professional safety company dedicated to helping ensure the safety of workers and the general public. RSI lives and breathes its mission statement of "Safety through Education". Its University-based training helps protect clients from fines or litigation stemming from noncompliance, incidence of RF overexposures, or other general safety issues.

RSI Corporation's incubator and Safety Training Center are located in Alva, Oklahoma on the campus of Northwestern Oklahoma State University (NWOSU), one of six state-supported regional universities in Oklahoma. RSI's sales office and outgoing call center are located 20 miles away in Kiowa, Kansas, which rests on the Kansas/Oklahoma state line.

RSI is the only University-based safety firm which specializes in safety services including:

• Training
• Workplace hazard assessments
• Written programs for industries such as:
• Telecommunications (radio and television broadcasting, cellular, wireless and two-way)
• Oil and gas
• Grain handling and more

Over the past few years, RSI's instructors have trained many people in live classes. RSI has performed thousands of on-time RF hazard assessments across the nation, from Deadhorse, Alaska to the southern tip of Florida, northeast Maine to the big island of Hawaii. In short, RSI has business alliances with 65 companies across the nation.

A World of Opportunity
In his former life (professional life, that is) RSI President Steve Walz was an executive with an international company in Houston. "During this time, I served on a committee in 1997 whose task was to develop a national standard for radio frequencies," he says. "This is when it dawned on me there was a world of opportunity in this area and I decided to look into starting a company that dealt solely with these issues."

Local Support System
"My wife and I were originally from Oklahoma; so deciding where to launch the new company was the easy part," Walz says. So, in 1998, RSI Corporation became a proud component of the Alva, Oklahoma and Kiowa, Kansas landscape.

"It was clear from the beginning where we wanted to be, but I can't tell you how often clients from other parts would ask, 'Why are you in Oklahoma?' Initially, I don't think they 'got it' because of some preconceived notions out there about a company in rural Oklahoma," Walz says. "It wasn't long before these same clients realized professional people can live anywhere. Among other things, they seem to appreciate the 'can do' attitude that prevails in this state. "

Walz also believes the challenges start-up businesses in rural Oklahoma may face are far outweighed by the advantages. "Oklahoma's central location is a huge plus. We are equally accessible to the East and West coasts," he says. "Also, Oklahoma offers an impressive array of state supported business programs and one of the strongest incubator systems I've seen anywhere. One of the first things I would encourage new business owners to do is to take advantage of the resources available on a local level. This can be a tremendous help."

Investing in the Community
Especially since it was once incubated itself, the benefits of incubators and the many services they provide to start-up businesses are highly valued at RSI Corporation.

"Once a start-up company becomes a part of our incubator services in Alva, we do all we can to help them prosper and thrive. Any local business that wants to promote and improve this community has our support," Walz says. "I would recommend incubation to any fledgling company. It provides new companies with much needed initial support and confidence to eventually stand strong on their own."

According to Walz, business owners in Oklahoma share a common bond. "The state offers many selling points such as a fast turn-around; personal and dependable service; and low cost on overhead (certainly less than on services rendered on both the East and West coasts)," he says. "These factors are all very appealing to prospective customers around the world and make doing business with a rural Oklahoma company a smart decision."

To contact RSI Corporation: Marketing Director, Cady Gates, 888-830-5648, ext. 113, cadyg@rsi.com.