Computers & Electronics 1996 - Company News Summary

Vodafone has acquired Peoples Phone, the distributor of telephone handsets, for £77m, in order to reduce its dependence on independent retailers.
20-Nov-1996

Azlan, the computer products distributor, has acquired Akam International Holding, the Dutch computer training concern, for £30m, in order to speed up its expansion into Europe.
20-Nov-1996

Cedardata, the commercial software supplier, has acquired Teleconnect Systems, the supplier of call centre management systems, for £4m.
15-Nov-1996

Misys has acquired Frustum, the US designer of software that enables banks to monitor activities such as foreign exchange trading, for £37m.
13-Nov-1996

Align-Rite International of the US is to double production at its Bridgend plant which makes photo-masks for the semiconductor industry, by investing £11m and creating 200 jobs.
07-Nov-1996

British Telecom has announced a £12bn merger with MCI, the US long-distance carrier, in which it is acquiring the remaining 80% stake it does not already own, thus creating a new entity called Concert which will be the world's fourth-largest telecoms company.
04-Nov-1996

Seagate Technology of the US is to set up a £68m factory to make substrates for computer disk drives in Limavady, Northern Ireland, with the creation of 759 jobs.
11-Sep-1996

4Front has bought Hammer Distribution, the Basingstoke-based distributor of Micropolis and Sony storage products, for £1.8m.
28-Aug-1996

Sanderson Electronics is buying Alpha Microsystems (Great Britain) from its US parent for £1.4m.
14-Aug-1996

Financial Objects has acquired Ibis, the Italian banking software concern, for £4m.
14-Aug-1996

Bermo of the US is planning a £4m electronic components factory in Glenrothes with the creation of 100 jobs.
07-Aug-1996

Sema Group is buying Syntax Processing, Olivetti's facilities management business, for about £64m.
18-Jul-1996

Mercury Communications has sold Mercury Paging to a US management team for £60m, in order to focus on long-distance telephony and specific business sectors.
16-Jul-1996

LG of South Korea is to build a £1.6bn electronics complex in Newport, south Wales, to manufacture semiconductors and television parts and create 6,100 jobs.
10-Jul-1996

Vodafone is to acquire the remaining two-thirds of Talkland, the service provider, from Compagnie Generale des Eaux of France for £30m.
10-Jul-1996

The Lite-On Technology Corporation of Taiwan is to set up a £40m computer monitor factory in Lanarkshire, creating over 1,000 jobs.
06-Jul-1996

Cookson Group has bought Camelot Systems, the US electronic components maker, for up to $100m.
03-Jul-1996

Brammer has acquired Hamilton Rentals Nederland, the computer hire concern, for up to £6.8m.
02-Jul-1996

Philips Telecom-PMR, the mobile radio business, has been bought from Philips Electronics by management for £60m.
02-Jul-1996

British Telecom is setting up a new telemarketing centre in Warrington which will provide 1,000 part-time jobs from next January.
28-Jun-1996

Seagate of the US has bought Holistic Systems, the London-based software developer, for £55m.
22-Jun-1996

The government is to soon announce plans to set up a national microelectronics institute in Scotland, to improve technical training in the manufacture of semiconductors.
21-Jun-1996

Interconnection Systems is planning a £120m printed circuit board plant in north Tyneside, creating 1,000 jobs.
20-Jun-1996

ADT of Bermuda is to acquire Automated Security (Holdings), the electronic security concern, for $250m.
20-Jun-1996

McDonnell Information Systems, the computer services concern, is to sell its New Zealand and Australian operations to Continuum Australia for £7m.
20-Jun-1996

Intek Diversified Corp of the US is acquiring Securicor's Radiocoms division, which includes narrowband wireless technology and manufacturing operations, in return for 25m Intek shares.
19-Jun-1996

Williams Holdings' electronics division, SAIA Burgess Electronics, is being sold to a management buy-out for £71m.
18-Jun-1996

Standard Platforms Holdings, the computer supplier, is planning a reverse takeover of DSI Data Systems International, which trades as Action Computer Supplies.
13-Jun-1996

Datrontech is buying Connectivity Group, the communications products specialist, for up to £6.4m.
12-Jun-1996

Kewill Systems has bought Scott-Anglia Holdings and its Meadowhouse Bar-Laser subsidiary, which provides EDI systems to retailers, for £3.3m.
31-May-1996

Shinho Electronic Telecommunications of South Korea is to build a £8.2m plant to make computer monitors in Fife, creating 280 jobs.
30-May-1996

Kalamazoo Computer Group has conditionally agreed to buy the European automotive dealer systems operations of Datapoint Corp of the US for $33m.
30-May-1996

Tenma of Japan is to expand its printer components plant near Glasgow, creating 119 jobs.
24-May-1996

Kohdensha of Japan is investing £6.5m in a circuit board factory in Dunfermline, creating 87 jobs.
24-May-1996

Softbank PSC, the provider of computer technical support, plans to expand its Watford HQ, creating over 200 jobs.
20-May-1996

Kingston Communications has bought out Yorkshire Electricity's 50% stake in their Torch Telecom joint venture for £24m.
17-May-1996

Simple Technology, the Californian computer company, is to set up a European HQ in East Kilbride, creating 360 jobs.
19-Apr-1996

Seagate Technology of the US is planning a £50m expansion of its Londonderry video heads plant, creating 300 jobs.
16-Apr-1996

Fujitsu is planning a £7.4m expansion of its Belfast telecommunications switching gear plant, creating 100 jobs.
13-Apr-1996

Ericsson is buying out Vodafone's share of Orbitel Mobile Communications, their mobile equipment manufacturing joint venture, for undisclosed terms.
12-Apr-1996

Infogrames Entertainment of France is buying Ocean International, the UK-based computer games concern, in a deal worth about $100m which will result in one of the five biggest such companies in the world.
12-Apr-1996

Mitsubishi Electric is to increase Apricot computer production at its Glenrothes factory in a £200m investment programme and expand its research facility in Birmingham, creating 300 and 100 jobs respectively.
02-Apr-1996

Daewoo Electronics of South Korea has confirmed it will spend £14.8m expanding its VTR plant in Antrim, creating 300 jobs.
28-Mar-1996

Datrontech, the computer component distributor, has bought Summit Peripherals, the computer storage distributor, for £1.6m.
28-Mar-1996

Photronics of the US is planning a £47m photomasking development in Manchester, creating 270 jobs.
26-Mar-1996

Daewoo of South Korea and Texas Instruments of the US are discussing a possible $1bn investment in a semiconductor plant in Northern Ireland.
18-Mar-1996

Interconnection Systems is planning a £100m printed circuit board factory in North Tyneside, creating 1,000 jobs.
18-Mar-1996

Three South Korean companies - Sung Kwang Electro Mechanics, Fine Electromechanics and Poong Jeon - are to invest in facilties in south Yorkshire to supply parts to Samsung, creating 184 jobs.
06-Mar-1996

Lynx Holdings is acquiring Tesoft, the Spanish automotive software concern, for £6.4m.
06-Mar-1996

IBM is buying Data Sciences, the computer services spin-off from Thorn EMI, for £95m, which means that the company's planned stock market flotation has been cancelled.
05-Mar-1996

QPL International of Hong Kong is planning a £230m semiconductor plant at Newport, south Wales, creating 768 jobs.
02-Mar-1996

McDonnell Information Systems has sold International Banking Systems to Management Technology, the US banking software concern, in a deal worth about $3m.
29-Feb-1996

Integrated Micro Products is investing £2.2m in a new plant at Annfield Plain, County Durham, to increase production of computer systems for the telecoms sector, creating 114 jobs.
24-Feb-1996

Sema Group is acquiring Datashield, the computer disaster recovery concern, from Sogeris.
22-Feb-1996

Torex Hire, the tool hire company, is acquiring Smart Terminals, the developer of computer-based management systems for retailers, for £4.8m.
22-Feb-1996

Weyrad Electronics has been bought from Racal Electronics by a management buy-in team for £3m.
22-Feb-1996

Time and Data Systems International, the card-based payment systems company, has been bought by management for £3.5m.
21-Feb-1996

P&P is selling Principal Distribution, the computer peripherals and software distributor, to a "buy-in management buy-out", for an undisclosed sum.
13-Feb-1996

Telecom Sciences Corporation, a new company, has bought Philips' Scottish telecoms equipment activities.
09-Feb-1996

Motorola is planning a £116m European headquarters in Swindon, creating 700 jobs.
07-Feb-1996

Johnson Matthey is buying Cray Research's US printed circuit boards operation for $40m.
07-Feb-1996

Kewill Systems has bought Process Computing, the warehouse management systems company, for £3.1m.
03-Feb-1996

Roxboro Group has acquired Pressure Systems, the US instrumentation company, for £4.9m.
02-Feb-1996

Panasonic is planning a £40m warehouse in Northampton which will create up to 100 jobs.
01-Feb-1996

Oxford Molecular, the developer of software for the drugs industry, has bought three US companies - Chemical Informatics, MacVector and Health Designs.
01-Feb-1996

Siemens Nixdorf has bought ICL's medical business for £15m, which should give it 25% of the health care market.
27-Jan-1996

Farnell Electronics is buying Premier Industrial Corp, the US electronics distributor, for $2.8bn.
23-Jan-1996

Sema Group has bought Goya Services Telematicos, the Spanish internet provider.
18-Jan-1996

PolyGram is acquiring the PDO compact disc production plant in Blackburn from Philips.
16-Jan-1996

Bull UK & Ireland has bought a majority stake in Cara Group, the Irish computer services concern.
13-Jan-1996

Xyratex of Hampshire has sold its flexible circuit division to Adflex Solutions of the US for $56m.
10-Jan-1996

Fujitsu is setting up a R&D centre in London, employing 20 staff to work on advanced computer design.
09-Jan-1996