ICL Plc has struck up a co-operative agreement with Stratus Computer Ltd in a bid to extend its UK systems integration business to fault-tolerant systems. The two plan to work together in bids to qualified major customers, with ICL acting as prime contractor and Stratus offering expertise, supplying and supporting its full 80860-based fault-tolerant range. Both sales forces will be aligned in the effort. The deal is not an OEM agreement – unlike the deals Stratus already has with IBM Corp, Olivetti & Co, NEC Corp and L M Ericsson – and ICL will not be re-badging the boxes. Nor is it exclusive, each is free to work with other suppliers if need be. But Stratus claims that total revenues could be from UKP50 to UKP100m over the next five years, with UKP10m forecast for the first year. Stratus should get about a third of that. ICL has worked with Stratus before, using its hardware as a component of its Carrier400 message handling system. Key markets include building societies (to run ICL’s Fujitsu-sourced automatic teller machines), utilities, and secure government applications. Eastern European business may also benefit Stratus, which has no presence there itself. Both companies use Unix System V.4, although ICL will also use the proprietary VOS operating system where customers want it. ICL also plans to adapt some of its Unix applications to run on Stratus kit.
