Micronics Computers Inc, Fremont, California manufacturer of system boards and multimedia peripherals for personal computers, continues to plumb the depths with disappearing revenues and mounting losses, and the spectre of a corporate restructuring plan is just around the corner, consisting principally of wide- ranging lay-offs. The company will axe 30% of its staff by the end of September at an estimated cost of $800,000. Micronics third quarter net losses to June 30 were $2.9m, up from losses of $1.9m last year with revenue falling 25.2% at $22.3m. The introduction of two new systems boards in the period, the ‘Stingray’ and the ‘Dual Fortress’, based around Intel Corp’s Pentium II processor, has failed to halt the slide in revenues and the company is cutting costs in every way it knows how. Nevertheless, chief executive Shanker Munshani is still talking in terms of developing cutting edge products to bolster revenues. Meanwhile the share price continues on its slow but relentless downward trajectory and Micronics is pinning its real hopes on some kind of strategic partnership.
