Meridian International has announced the purchase of computer disaster recovery specialist Computer Uitwijk Centrum in the Netherlands. Situated in a Dutch polder – that’s a piece of low lying reclaimed land if you’re as ignorant as we were until yesterday – at Lelystadt, the company employs 55 people and is described as the main operator of computer disaster recovery services in Europe. Meridian, the computer leasing arm of Inspectorate International AG, is believed to have paid $6.0m for a 62.5% stake in the company, which has disaster recovery bases in Holland, Italy and the UK; tying in with Meridian’s own disaster recovery bases in Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and West Germany. Computer Uitwijk was set up seven years ago to provide a private disaster recovery service for its original founders, which included two major banks and the Dutch airline KLM. It went on to build up a substantial client base, but the original backers are pulling out as they feel it does not fit in with their own specialised business. Meridian says the acquisition reflects the trend towards increased internationalisation amongst its clients and is also a response to likely developments within Europe when the Single Market arrives in 1992.
