CompuAdd
{{Short description|American personal computer company, 1982–1994}}
{{Infobox company
| name = CompuAdd Corporation
| logo = File:CompuAdd wordmark.svg
| type = Private
| industry = Personal computers and peripherals
| founded = {{Start date and age|1982}} in Austin, Texas
| defunct = {{End date|1994}}
| fate = Acquired by Dimeling, Schrieber & Park
| founder = Bill Hayden
| products =
}}
CompuAdd Corporation was a manufacturer of personal computers in Austin, Texas. It assembled its product from components manufactured by others. CompuAdd created generic PC clone computers, but unlike most clone makers, it had a large engineering staff. CompuAdd also created a Multimedia PC (MPC), the FunStation, and a Sun workstation clone, the SS-1.
CompuAdd was the largest clone PC manufacturer in Austin until 1993 and outsold PC's Limited (now Dell Computer Corporation). CompuAdd sold PCs to corporate, educational and government entities. CompuAdd Computers 386 was on the US Army's Mobile Missile System in Gulf War 1 (1991) and it was rated and tested by the Army for that use.
History
=Background=
Bill Hayden was born in San Antonio, Texas. He went to school at the University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a degree in electrical engineering in 1971. He was employed by Texas Instruments as a design engineer in a classified government reconnaissance project. In 1974, he switched to TI's Calculator Division and became a project engineer. It was there that Hayden claims he developed the entrepreneurial spirit that he later applied when he started CompuAdd.
After several years in this position, which required a great deal of overtime, he decided that he needed more time to contemplate his future. He noticed that quality assurance was less demanding work with shorter hours and switched to that. As his 10-year anniversary with TI approached in 1981, Hayden turned in his resignation.[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb4804/is_199301/ai_n17494981 "Texas EE Seizes the Entrepreneurial Spirit", EDN, January 14, 1993]
=Products and retail stores=
File:CompuAdd-Model-M-Front.JPG]]
CompuAdd was founded by Bill Hayden in the following year, 1982. CompuAdd using $100,000 earned by selling real estate part-time. Hayden sold computer peripherals and add-on devices such as disk drives. The name came from this computer add-on business plan.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/computerworld268unse/page/41/mode/1up | title=Doing the Texas Three Step | magazine=Computerworld | last1=Fitzgerald | first1=Michael | date=24 February 1992 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=41 }}
The company's marketing slogan was: Customer Driven, by Design,DIRECT-MARKETING, mailed by the company: back of Holiday Catalog 1989 and it prided itself on its "no frills" corporate culture.{{cite news
|last1=Lewis |first1=Peter H.
|title=The Executive Computer; Compuadd Moves Up to the First Tier
|work=The New York Times
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/24/business/the-executive-computer-compuadd-moves-up-to-the-first-tier.html
|accessdate=8 September 2017 |date=24 November 1991}}
CompuAdd operated a chain of retail computer stores in the United States. They also had a strong server line. At the height of CompuAdd's reign, it had over 100 sales people. In 1992, Hayden split the company into two parts: "one to handle 125 retail outlets and international markets" and the other for "large business and government accounts."{{cite news
|newspaper=The New York Times
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/04/business/business-people-compuadd-chairman-completes-revamping.html
|title=Compuadd Chairman Completes Revamping
|author=Adam Bryant |date=4 April 1992}}
Alongside its PC-compatible systems, the company joined several other PC clone manufacturers in introducing workstation products based on the SPARC architecture, colloquially known as SPARC clones and competing with Sun Microsystems' own product range.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1991-01/page/n23/mode/1up | title=SPARC Is Turning into a Blaze | magazine=Byte | last1=Linderholm | first1=Owen | last2=Loeb | first2=Larry | date=January 1991 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=20,24 }} CompuAdd's SS-1 workstation was described as "basic" and with the "least added value" amongst its clone peers, but competitively priced at ${{Format price|9695}}.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/eu_BYTE-1991-07_OCR/page/n305/mode/2up | title=Five New SPARC-Based Workstations Compete with Sun | magazine=Byte | last1=Yager | first1=Tom | date=July 1991 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=210–214 }}
In 1992, having initially won a substantial contract to supply the United States Air Force with desktop computers, CompuAdd was forced to suspend a corresponding investment in manufacturing due to challenges made to the outcome of this procurement exercise, these eventually leading to the award of the contract to Zenith Data Systems.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/computerworld2637unse/page/24/mode/1up | title=Zenith wins mega micro DOD contract | magazine=Computerworld | last1=Anthes | first1=Gary H. | date=14 September 1992 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=24 }} Despite this setback, the company secured its largest contract to date, supplying Sears, Roebuck and Co. with point-of-sale systems.
=Bankruptcy and acquisition=
In 1993, CompuAdd closed all of its 110 retail stores,{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/03/16/business/company-news-compuadd-will-close-retail-unit.html
|title=Compuadd Will Close Retail Unit
|author=Thomas C. Hayes |date=March 16, 1993}} to concentrate on direct sales, and sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection{{cite magazine |magazine=Inc. |last1=Prior |first1=Teri
|title=The Class of 1989: Where Are They Now?
|url=https://www.inc.com/magazine/19941015/3299.html |accessdate=8 September 2017 |date=15 October 1994}} – but also launched a new line of Centura personal computers. When they emerged from bankruptcy in November 1993, 75 percent ownership of the company was transferred to unsecured creditors, with Hayden retaining 20 percent and the remainder held for employees.{{cite web
|title=CompuAdd Computer Corporation History
|url=http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/compuadd-computer-corporation-history
|website=www.fundinguniverse.com |accessdate=8 September 2017}}
Hayden shortly afterwards resigned as CEO, a position taken over by Richard Krause, the company's president and chief operating officer.{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/25/business/compuadd-s-chief-resigns.html
|title=Compuadd's Chief Resigns |date=November 25, 1993}} Following the consolidation trend within the clone industry, as manufacturers sought to preserve volumes and access to lucrative corporate markets, CompuAdd sought to merge with fellow manufacturer Zeos International.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/sim_computerworld_1994-02-07_28_6/page/n37/mode/1up | title=Mail-order clones cling to bottom rung | magazine=Computerworld | last1=Fitzgerald | first1=Michael | date=7 February 1994 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=30 }} Framed as an acquisition by Zeos, negotiations broke down between the companies, and Zeos was ultimately acquired by Micron Technology.{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/computerworld2843unse/page/32/mode/1up | title=Micron, Zeos plan to merge | magazine=Computerworld | last1=Vijayan | first1=Jaikumar | date=24 October 1994 | access-date=10 February 2025 | pages=32 }} CompuAdd was subsequently bought by Dimeling, Schrieber & Park, a private Philadelphia investment company in September 1994.{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/19/business/company-news-philadelphia-investment-firm-buys-compuadd.html
|title=Philadelphia Investment Firm Buys CompuAdd
|date=October 19, 1994}}
References
{{Reflist|2}}
External links
{{commons cat}}
- [http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/CompuAdd-Computer-Corporation-Company-History.html CompuAdd corporate information and history at Fundinguniverse.com]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Compuadd}}
Category:1982 establishments in Texas
Category:1994 disestablishments in Texas
Category:1994 mergers and acquisitions
Category:American companies established in 1982
Category:American companies disestablished in 1994
Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1993
Category:Computer companies established in 1982
Category:Computer companies disestablished in 1994
Category:Defunct computer companies of the United States
Category:Defunct computer hardware companies
Category:Defunct computer systems companies