Advanced Systems Architecture Ltd, best known for its dataflow modelling product, Auto-G, has been acquired for $2m by the US company, RJO Enterprises Inc. The Camberley, Surrey-based Advanced Systems first achieved prominence in the US after Auto-G was used in development work on the Strategic Defence Initiative, commonly known as Star Wars. The company has also developed an algorithm called Data Fusion, which has applications in radar and sensor technology, and is obviously of interest to the military establishment. RJO Enterprises Inc of Lanham, Maryland, near Washington DC, was established six years ago, and by 1988, was achieving annual sales of $50.2m. Of those sales, 58% came from the US Department of Defense, and that same body provided 84% of growth during the last fiscal year. Both companies have interests other than defence, and RJO hopes to use the new UK base as a European launch pad for its Document Archiving and Retrieval System, which has been installed in the White House. Advanced Systems is also known on the continent, and has collaborated with Telsa SpA and Telespazio SA in the design of a fault tolerant digital communication switch to go into orbit on a satellite. Chris Williams, Advanced Systems’ managing director, intends to continue developing digital and cellular communications within the European environment, but he regards the US as the primary market for Auto-G. Williams did consider merging with another European company, but he believes that RJO’s financial muscle and contacts will provide substantial benefits to Advanced Systems, not least in terms of research and development funds. It may also provide the opportunity to launch the Softchip computer which Advanced Systems had to shelve. Despite funding from the Department of Trade & Industry, the company was financially unable to release the machine which allows software emulators to plug in as hardware.
