As reported last week (CI No 1,069) VAX systems management and control specialists UIS (Holdings) Ltd has expanded its US operations via the acquisition of Morino Associates Inc’s American Management Co, AMC, in Boston. This is the third acquisition in the DEC systems software market for the Epsom, Surrey-based company in the last two years: VAX utilities supplier Software Techniques of Cypress, California was purchased in October 1987, followed by the Pacs Plus division of Signal Technology Inc based in Santa Barbara, California last month. Morino exchanged its ownership of the business for an 8% stake in UIS, and says there are plans for the companies to develop linkages between UIS’ VAX-based products and Marino’s management products for the IBM environment. Two new products are being introduced as a result of the acquisition, V.X Master and V.X Manager. V.X Master is a menu-based and screen-driven product through which system management tasks can be handled without having to refer to the manual. Sitting beneath V.X Master is V.X Manager which provides guided access to over 100 VMS functions without the need for operators to learn the DCL Digital Control Language syntax, and incorporates a reporting and analysis system. With at least 20,000 VAXes installed in the UK alone David Warrilow, UIS’ UK general manager, said he expects to see the British VAX system management market treble over the next three years. However as the recent acquisitions would suggest UIS is making a major play for the far bigger US marketplace – it is estimated that there are as many VAXes in California as in the whole of the UK. The company, which now employs 162 people here and in the US, is projecting sales of $17m this year.
