The Santa Cruz Operation Inc is setting out to strengthen its European distribution channels to large scale public sector and utilities procurements by striking up a deal with systems integrator ACT Logsys, part of the ACT Group Plc – claimed to be the first such relationship in place. Santa Cruz European managing director Lars Turndal said the co-operative agreement, under which ACT will supply, integrate and support Santa Cruz Unix operating systems and products, should be viewed as a new tier of distribution alongside the distributors, dealers and OEM channels Santa Cruz already has in place. Distribution has always been our problem, said Turndal. PC manufacturers and distributors do not always have the necessary skill sets to put it all together. Hemel-Hempstead-based ACT Logsys will work direct with Santa Cruz or through an OEM customer or distributor to develop and package the technology into a turnkey system: it is already working with the Employment Department on the UKP2.4m Mascot project, and has 10 more sizeable procurements in the pipeline. ACT has a similar deal with OSI communications specialists Retix Corp for OSI on Intel kit (CI No 1,574) and local networking outfit Syntax Inc (CI No 1,745).
