Fujitsu Ltd is now firmly in control at what used to be ICL Plc’s volume products division in Europe, and has now appointed an industry veteran to run it. Winfried Hoffmann has been appointed chief operating officer at Fujitsu ICL Computers Ltd following the surprise resignation of chief executive officer David Mills yesterday. Mills, a 20-year ICL staffer, has left to join another, unspecified computer company. He has been in charge of the Fujitsu ICL unit since ICL’s volume products division was folded into Fujitsu’s European personal computer business a year ago (CI No 2,845). Hoffman was president of Commodore Europe between 1985 and 1989, and in 1990 for ASI GmbH, a German personal computer manufacturer that was acquired by ICL in June 1995. Fujitsu ICL says sales in Europe grew 110% in its first year of operation, taking its European market share from 1.9% to 3.8% with sales in the German and UK consumer and retail sectors leading the way. Overall, Fujitsu shipped 2.8 million personal computers in 1996, and grew its global PC business by 78%.
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