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By Kelly Wilson, Sentinel Reporter, November 25, 2008

Last updated: Wednesday, November 26, 2008 7:32 AM EST

Four years ago, three former tech employees came together from two different backgrounds to form one of Carlisle’s more successful startup companies.

With information technology experience from Ian Berry and Lindsay Snider and Guy Suter’s tech-based marketing skills, their small data backup business grew fast.

“There are a lot of reasons for data loss,” Suter explained, including theft, machine breakdown and, as the hurricanes of the past few years have shown, natural disasters.

BitLeap set up shop in the Murata Business Center at the end of Lincoln Street and quickly became a prominent fixture, even offering advice to its smaller neighbors in the building.

The trio started upstairs in the main part of the building, but when their business took off, they renovated the basement and moved in.

Most recently, BitLeap was acquired by Barracuda Networks, a California-based company that calls itself “the worldwide leader in e-mail and Web security.”

“They are quite a bit larger than us,” Berry said.

For the little company, it’s a great opportunity to grow the product and reach more customers.

More than cash

BitLeap got its start with funding from Ben Franklin Technology Partners, a statewide company devoted to helping technological businesses get started.

“What we think of in terms of technology is something you can protect,” said Elizabeth Wilson, director of marketing at the company’s main office in Erie.

BitLeap has since paid Ben Franklin back with interest, but the founders said the company gave them more than just cash but also mentoring as the new entrepreneurs had plenty of questions about starting a business.

Having Murata nearby was another advantage because of its “incubator” setup, which allows new companies to share resources like printers while learning from each other and sharing ideas.

“What people are looking for when they start a tech company is, can you get the people and is the atmosphere good,” said Pam Martin, regional director for Ben Franklin’s south-central region.

Being near other mentors and having a supportive government that offers incentives to businesses like BitLeap also contribute to the company’s success and the success of others in the region, she said.

But none of that would have been of any use without a starting point, which the three partners say was an under-served corner of the tech market.

BitLeap’s big idea was a way for companies to backup their data in on- and off-site locations.

“If a business were to burn down or have a tornado come through, they would have two copies off-site,” Suter said of BitLeap technology.

At that time, the most prevalent form of backup protection was a kind of tape-based medium that only functioned if IT staffers kept up with its maintenance demands.

“Before 2004, broadband in the business wasn’t omnipresent,” said Snider, and the BitLeap system was right on the edge of the new technology. “This was kind of the earliest this could have been offered.”

With BitLeap becoming part of Barracuda, the little Carlisle company now has far more resources at its disposal, Berry said, while still maintaining autonomy to take care of itself.

There will also be more customers to think of, as the newest member of the larger company grows from a base of about 800 customers to about 70,000, including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

BitLeap and Barracuda are privately held and while Suter declined to put a dollar figure on the acquisition price, but he did say it was substantial.

“We’ve got a reason to come to work every day for a long time,” he added.