CEISB technical assistance services make companies and communities more competitive and resilient with sustainable business practices, technologies, and solutions. Our team works at the intersection of industry, science, and government to help clients achieve profitable, sustainable results.
What is technical assistance?
Technical assistance is the pairing of stakeholders (individuals, groups, businesses, organizations, institutions, etc.) with subject matter experts who can guide them through the evaluation of current processes and techniques to identify opportunities for positive change. Our sustainability professionals will work with your organization to formulate strategies to improve the sustainability of your operations.
ISTC has provided technical assistance on pollution prevention, waste, and hazardous materials to the citizens of IL since 1984. The U.S. EPA website provides a list of similar technical assistance programs across the country.
We’re part of a state scientific survey, but we are a completely non-regulatory entity. When our technical assistance providers visit your facility, it is solely to help you identify and implement opportunities to improve your environmental performance, efficiency, and cost savings. We don’t issue citations and are not there to gather information for regulatory agencies. That said, we can assist you in ways that will not only ensure environmental compliance, but often take you beyond compliance to become an example of best practices for others to emulate.
CEISB respects the need for clients to protect sensitive or proprietary information. Interactions and recommendations provided as part of a free initial site assessment are kept confidential, and we do not share deliverables resulting from paid projects (e.g., reports, tools, study findings, etc.) without permission. If you decide to engage CEISB on a contractual basis, we can work with your organization on an appropriate non-disclosure agreement (NDA) or confidentiality agreement, if desired.
We are part of the University of Illinois, but academic research is not the focus of our technical assistance services. Our job titles may include terms such as “scientist” or “researcher,” because we’re part of a research institution, but we’re not engaging you to conduct research at your facility, involve you in student projects, or discuss theory.
Of course, if your organization is interested in such things, we have researchers on our staff and a wealth of connections within our own institution, university, and other academic institutions. We’d be happy to collaborate with you on research or facilitate introductions to other potential collaborators in academia. However, our focus when providing technical assistance is on applied science. Our team members apply their scientific expertise to address specific challenges and opportunities at your facility for real-world results.
Sustainability is about more than protecting the environment. Learn more about sustainability.
Our work is primarily funded through state taxes; grants from government agencies (local, state, or federal), non-profits or foundations; and fee-for-service projects. See the Work With Us section of this website for further information.