Maxwell Technologies Inc is a broadly-based group – too broadly based in the eyes of the board. It currently has four divisions extending from pulse power technology to software and industrial computing. Now directors of the San Diego, California based company want it to become a little more narrowly focused, and the software side faces a major reorganization. Unprofitable products – such as a criminal justice information system – have been scrapped. And the remaining segments will be folded into whatever is the most appropriate of the three remaining divisions. Though a spate of acquisitions has pushed the company into the red in the first nine months of the current year, revenues are bounding ahead at 20% or more. The industrial computing side has been an unglamorous activity in a sector that appeared to have little growth potential given the state of manufacturing industry in the West. But Maxwell is full of enthusiasm for its I-Bus offshoot and the potential offered by a modest $5m acquisition earlier this year of Havant, UK-based Tri-Map Ltd. What has given the small number of players in industrial computing a new zest for life is the arrival of Computer Telephony Integration CTI and call centers. They are in the right place at the right time with Compaq, the only major operator, to show any interest in the market. Forecasters Ovum predict that the market for CTI in call centers will grow from $1.1bn in 1996 to $7bn in 2002. While the US is the biggest market, the Tri-Map acquisition enlarges its product range and give it a manufacturing base and distribution channels in Europe. The industrial computing side currently provides Maxwell with 25% to 30% of revenues. With the traditional PC makers fighting out a ferocious competitive battle, industrial computing may turn out to be one of the most dynamic sectors of the market.
