Unisys Corp’s UK operation presented its review of the year at the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall yesterday with a seemingly endless stream of charts and forecasts showing growth and yet more growth. European turnover for 1988 was $2,900m, up 13% on last year – the UK saw a 24% growth to $550m – and according to UK chairman John Perry the European divisions now account for 40% of Unisys’ worldwide commercial business. Since overall turnover for the group was flat in 1988, Unisys clearly did very badly in the US. The finance and public sectors each account for 31% of European sales, with industrial and commercial applications representing 27%. The UK market accounts for 20% of Unisys’ European business and orders for Unix, personal computers and software in this country were up 25%, 55% and 42% respectively. Sales will be targeted towards large companies over the next few years, as, Perry claimed, up to 70% of spending on information technology comes from the top 10% of companies. In view of DEC’s recent announcements, Perry also made much of figures appearing to show Unisys machines matching the performance of DEC VAX systems right through the ranges, but with the edge on price. As far as plans for the forthcoming year were concerned, little was revealed. New additions to the V and OS3 families were promised, the Mapper generator will appear on A and OS3 systems, and on the V range in 1990. In addition, the Linc generator will be available under Unix by the end of 1989. A new ‘A La Carte’ service is to be launched this week, a programme to develop tailor-made systems for customers, and a new order from the home improvements company Magnet Plc, Keighley, Yorkshire, for a top-end Burroughs-derived A17 mainframe was revealed. As far as Unix is concerned, the 6000/50 Convergent machine is the best seller at present, ominously missing was a mainframe sales breakdown, rumoured to be poor, and Perry would not be drawn on the future of the Computer Consoles systems, except to say that sales had not been high.
