History (1988): Control Data Establishes Imprimis

Control Data Corporation (Minneapolis, MN) is establishing its data storage products group as a separate, stand-alone subsidiary to be known as Imprimis Technology Incorporated (Imprimus means in the first place).

Control Data chairman Robert M. Price said: “This move will better enable the company to compete in the dynamic and challenging disk drive market by providing greater flexibility in response to customer requirements. It will also allow Imprimis to engage in forming the strategic alliances necessary to ensure its leadership and excellence in the global manufacturing and marketing of
these critical components. Options open to Imprimis include joint ventures, partnerships and other alternatives, including selling a minority of its stock to the public.”

Claude Barathon has been named VP of European operations.

The European company will be headquartered in Paris, France, and should employ 25 people.

For this reason only 4 groups instead of 5 remain under Control Data’s name: Computer Systems and Services ($1.3 billion in 87), Business Services ($.5 billion), Government Systems ($.4 billion) and training and Education/Ticketron ($177 million).

The separation from data storage products group as an actual 100% subsidiary of Control Data can be explained by the fact that it will be easier in this way to compete with independent HDD manufacturers. It is also easy to conceive a division from a group that hardly made 5% of its sales with its corporation. It probably also was urgent to take over an activity accounting for almost one third of the group’s sales but whose revenues had severely dropped these last few years: $1.27 billion in 85, $1.05 billion in 1986, and $.97 billion in 1987, even if an increase is expected in 1988 with a figure close to $1.2 billion and finally a consequential partaking to the group’s benefits.

The revenues decreases experienced by the data storage products group over the past three years have been due to the discontinuance of various product lines and the divestiture of certain business. The reasons include a softening of demand of older large disk units and a shortage of thin-film heads for production of the FSD II 9-inch disk drive. The group’s results were also affected by the losses of Laser Magnetic Storage International (LMS), a joint venture between Philips (51%) and Control Data (49%).

But this operation could be a separation aiming to sell part of Control Data’s group. On the computer market, you often hear the name of Unisys who makes no secret about wanting to buy one of the most largest computer companies.

An Unisys (Burroughs and Univac), Control Data group would look great next to IBM. One of data storage products group’s biggest customer is in fact Unisys with about $100 million sales (among the other big ones are Sony, Bull, Compaq, Sun, NCR).

Imprimis is the worldwide leader in thin-film heads, in front of IBM, with several large contracts (with Micropolis for example).

Control Data and Unisys share close relations: last year, Control Data increased its ownership interest in Magnetic Peripherals Inc., the company’s disk drive research, development and manufacturing operation, from 67% to 90% by acquiring one-half of interests of Honeywell Bull and Bull Systems, and the minority interests of … Unisys.

Of course, under Imprimis’ name data storage products group’s former plants will be gathered: in the US (Oklahoma City, MN), West Germany (Frankfurt), Portugal, Singapore, Malaysia and Hong-Kong.

This article is an abstract of new s published on the former paper version of Computer Data Storage Newsletter on issue ≠8, volume ≠1, published on September 1988.

NB: Seagate acquired Imprimis in 1989 for $450 million.