DEA/assurance region SBDC efficiency and unique projections

The University of Houston (UH) Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) were analyzed by Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Assurance Region (AR) methods. The DEA/AR analyses were made for 11 DMUs in 1990 and 1991 and for 13 DMUs in 1992. The DEA ratio (CCR) method was applied to Model I in all three years; unique optimal solutions to the DEA-inefficient DMUs were verified. Also, ARs were applied to eliminate some DEA-efficient DMUs requiring unreasonable multipliers to maximize efficiency. In addition, measures of returns-to-scale (RTS) intervals from application of the DEA convex (BCC) method in 1992 showed several additional DEA-efficient DMUs needed some additional funds to work toward the most productive scale size.