West German firms always did look set to have a head start in the race into East Europe, and Computerwoche reports that one such company, Konstanz-based personal computer maker Itos Computer GmbH – ComputerTecknik Mller resurrected under a new name – is already moving part of its manufacturing operations to Berlin, the obvious gateway to the East. By October, it expects the initial manufacturing facility and 50 staff to be capable of producing 60,000 units – personal computers and RISC workstations – a year. Development and support is also to be based in Berlin, and a repair centre that will repair faulty computers within 48 hours is planned. The project is part of Itos boss Harald Speyer’s mission to prove that internationally competitive computers can still be manufactured in Germany, and its manifesto was given a kick in the right direction last July when Itos received an order worth over $6m to supply 18 hospitals in the Zwickau, East Germany region with 80286- and 80386-based microcomputers.
