Columbia-based RWD Technologies Inc. has made a tidy business of selling consulting services and training business leaders in the United States and in a few spots in Europe.

Kenneth J. Rebeck, the company's chief operating officer, said he would like the publicly traded company to double its international business - which accounted for 10 percent of last year's $117 million in sales - in coming years, and expand beyond London, Germany, Singapore and Canada. But Rebeck's experience in trying to pick more valuable strategic locations for his company has taught him that it's still a big world out there.

But with the opening of the Howard County International Trade Center, Rebeck said, he might have found help.

"Every country has different rules. Some of it is around personnel and benefits, some of it is around how you do business. The answer you get in Switzerland is not the same as you'd get in Denmark," Rebeck said. "We approached these folks [at the trade center] and said, 'Do you have some ways to help make this easier?' We got the sense that they could."

The ITC, which opened 10 days ago in the county's small-business resource center, is designed to help small- to medium-sized businesses that want to learn more about global trading, or that are interested in starting or expanding their overseas trade.

The center will offer seminars, provide information to help companies research and connect businesses with experienced traders for advice.

One of the center's goals is to help educate would-be exporters about global trade, said Cynetta Cardwell, manager of the business resource center and member of the ITC committee.

According to the county's Economic Development Authority, Maryland businesses exported more than $4.9 billion in goods last year. Nearly 70 international companies have a presence in Howard County, the authority said.

"Those companies who survive are those companies that are connected and are global," she said. "We're going to assist them to develop or increase their international business."

Having an advocate to help small businesses that want to expand globally is not a new idea - neighboring jurisdictions such as Montgomery and Baltimore counties have long had trade specialists who worked with companies and connected them to state and federal resources.

Howard County companies have been less active working with the state than companies in Montgomery and Baltimore counties, according to officials at the international trade office in the state Department of Business and Economic Development.

"They certainly have a great deal of potential to do even better. We expect that with the cadre of companies that are there," said Sheila Bennett of the international trade office. Bennett spoke on a panel at the center's opening.

"I feel the resources are available to them," she said. Opening the center is an indication "the county may be recognizing what they need to do."

The new center is at the Business Resource Center on Bendix Road, also home to the NeoTech incubator. In addition to the literature and computer access available there, businesses have access to committee members who are experienced in international trade and who can offer specific advice, Cardwell said.

The ITC also works with the U.S. Department of Commerce office in Baltimore, which assists businesses in researching markets, working with foreign governments, getting information on trade procedures and marketing products overseas.

"A lot of what we do is market-entry assistance," said K. Joseph Burton, international trade specialist with the Commerce Department.

"I've got 82 countries with colleagues whose job is to help U.S. companies," he said. "We help them find in-country distribution partners, and we help market them."

The first trade seminar, scheduled for Thursday, will present the basics of exporting and will include information on major pitfalls and cultural faux pas, Cardwell said. Companies can face stiff penalties for shipping to someone who is not allowed to receive products from the United States, or lose a lot of money by not thoroughly checking their overseas business contacts, Burton said.

"Our idea is to ... make sure they know about these problems," he said. "What I hope [for] the companies is it's a new way to open avenues and [make] contacts they need. I hope more will take advantage of what's there."

Rebeck said he is hopeful the center will be able to help his consulting firm as it tries to increase its international sales.

"It will potentially help us streamline our expansion efforts and make better decisions," he said. "You're getting some very cost-effective help."