NYSTEC

• About NYSTEC
  • Practice Areas
  • Management
  • CEO's Letter
  • NYSTEC History
  • NYSTEC Clients
  • Health Care IT
  • Federal Labs
• The NYSTEC Difference
  • Why Choose an Independent Advisor?
  • Your Trusted Advisor
  • The Not-for-Profit Advantage
  • Certifications
  • What NYSTEC Can Do For You
  • Case Studies
• Business Inquiries
• Federal Labs
• Contract With NYSTEC
• Related Links

NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Sports Licensing System

The Client
New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation is responsible for conserving, improving and protecting the state’s natural resources and environment.  The Department also works to control water, land and air pollution, and ultimately to enhance the health, safety and welfare of all New Yorkers.

Project Background
Through the auspices of DEC, approximately 1,800 vendors across New York State sell sporting licenses and permits to the public.  These issuing agents include town clerks’ offices, sporting-goods stores, and other retail outlets around the state.  For the sale of licenses and permits, DEC and its issuing agents relied on a manual system that was highly paper-intensive.  DEC initiated a project to revamp this system by implementing state-of-the art technology linking each licensing outlet to a central computer repository that would store and process the licenses and permits, and handle the electronic transfer of funds.  Mail order and call-in options for sporting enthusiasts would also become part of the solution.

Project Summary
DEC hired NYSTEC in the mid-1990s to define and document the system requirements, and to develop an RFP package for the new system, known as the Department of Environmental Conservation Automated Licensing System (DECALS).  NYSTEC’s recommendations served as the basis for the Request for Proposal issued by the DEC.

How NYSTEC Helped
Over a period of many months, NYSTEC served as DEC’s trusted partner in developing the RFP and planning the system.  NYSTEC engineers and specialists conducted in-depth interviews with dozens of issuing agents and DEC officials to assess needs and gather requirements for a new system.  Company engineers performed extensive technology evaluations and offered ongoing engineering advice to the client.  NYSTEC’s preliminary work served as the basis for the final RFP, which was largely written by company technical engineers.

NYSTEC continued to act as DEC’s trusted technology partner well after initial system deployment.  NYSTEC reviewed vendor deliverables and helped design and implement sophisticated new capabilities for Internet sales, sportsman education, and more.  NYSTEC also worked closely with DEC to provide a detailed evaluation of the application, including the mapping of functionality to system requirements and providing a gap analysis of system shortfalls.  DEC used this information to ensure that all system requirements were addressed when its vendor contract came up for renewal.