Boca Research

Last updated
Inprimis, Inc.
FormerlyBoca Research, Inc. (1985–2001)
Company typePublic
IndustryComputer
FoundedJanuary 1985;39 years ago (1985-01) in Boca Raton, Florida
FounderTim Farris
DefunctJanuary 2002;22 years ago (2002-01)
FateAcquired by Ener1
ProductsPeripherals
Number of employees
330 (1996, peak)

Boca Research, Inc., later Inprimis, Inc., was an American computer company based in Boca Raton, Florida, and active between 1985 and 2002. The company manufactured a variety of expansion cards for the IBM PC and compatible systems, including memory cards, networking cards, sound cards, and graphics cards. Once a major player in the computer networking market, being the fourth-largest manufacturer of modems in 1996, Boca Research abandoned the PC hardware market entirely amid falling market share and manufactured set-top boxes in the last years of its existence.

Contents

History

Foundation (1985–1992)

Boca Research, Inc., was founded by Tim Farris in 1985 and incorporated in Boca Raton, Florida. [1] [2] Farris had previously co-founded Quadram Corporation, which was one of the first companies to manufacture expansion cards for the IBM PC, with Leland Strange in 1981. After selling off Quadram in 1984 and resigning from the company, Farris took a sabbatical and moved to Boca Raton in 1984. [1] Shortly thereafter, he founded Boca Research, having closely watched the burgeoning personal computer industry intently and being exasperated at the cost of expansion cards at the time, which had not gone down significantly despite the PC architecture quickly commodifying. [3] He incorporated Boca Research four blocks away from IBM's manufacturing complex in the city, where the IBM PC was developed. Boca Research benefited from their location due to the large number of engineers and developers in the city and from the cross-pollination of talent coming from IBM. [4] [5]

Boca's first products were low-cost memory expansion cards for the IBM PC. [4] The company was initially slow to develop new products; between 1985 and 1989, for example, the company introduced only 10 products. Farris' philosophy was to wait until initial interest in new expansion technologies had waned so that they could bulk purchase parts necessary for their creation at a lower cost. In 1989, the company expanded its portfolio of products significantly, introducing its first graphics cards and its first Micro Channel memory cards. Employment at the company expanded in turn to 50 workers by the end of the year, the company also increased the square-footage of their headquarters by 50 percent. [3] By the early 1990s, the company had expanded its manufacturing presence to the bordering city of Delray Beach, Florida, opening up a factory there. [6] In 1991, the company entered the networking market, manufacturing modems for personal computers. [7]

Expansion and IPO (1992–1996)

BOCALANcard-VL, VESA Local Bus local area networking card from 1994 Boca Research BOCALANcard-VL.jpg
BOCALANcard-VL, VESA Local Bus local area networking card from 1994

Boca Research filed its initial public offering on the stock market in February 1992. [8] Price per share rose from $8 to $14 between February 1993 to March 1993 following good sales in the quarter. In 1993, the company posted gross sales of $44.5 million. Despite healthy sales, reports of shrinking profit margins in the company in 1994—stemming from increased competition in the fax modem networking market where Boca had specialized in the preceding years—caused the stock to decline in June 1994. In an attempt to stem falling profits, Boca Research opened two more production lines in their Delray Beach plant and planned to hire between 50 and 60 workers in order to improve production efficiency. [6] Employment at the company eventually peaked at 330 in 1996. [9]

In September 1994, Farris stepped down as president and CEO, hiring Anthony Zalenski—then recently of Universal Data Systems, the modem manufacturing division of Motorola—to fill the role. [10] In April 1995, Farris resigned as chairman of the company, citing a change in life plans. He was replaced with E. Roe Stamps IV, who had been a director in the company since 1992. Farris remained on the board of directors. [11]

In June 1995, the company introduced SoundExpression, the company's first foray into sound cards. SoundExpression was a multifunction card: in addition to providing wavetable and FM synthesis audio for multimedia applications, the card also served as a networking modem, a fax modem, and a voicemail device. [12] The SoundExpression made use of an audio chipset designed by Crystal Semiconductor. [13]

Also in June 1995, Boca Research began talks with Hayes Microcomputer Products, a pioneering personal computer modem manufacturer, to acquire the latter for $75 million. Hayes had entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy that year; had the merger gone through, it would have created the third-largest manufacturer of modems, according to The New York Times . [14] [15] However, merger negotiations dissolved two months later, Boca blaming the collapse of the deal on Hayes talking with other potential merger candidates during their negotiations against Boca's wishes. [14] Dennis Hayes, chairman of Hayes, accused Boca of strong-arming. [14] [15] Boca ended up acquiring Global Village Communication, a manufacture of networking products for Apple's Macintosh, in June 1998 for $10 million. [16] [17] They in turn sold the Global Village division to Zoom Telephonics in 2000. [18]

Decline, name change, and acquisition (1996–2002)

Boca Research ranked the fourth largest manufacturer of modems in mid-1996. [9] Despite this, Boca's bottom line suffered throughout the year as faster, 56 kbit/s modems had proliferated too quick for Boca to compete with. The company delivered their first 56 kbit/s modem in March 1997, but by then it was too late. With computer system manufacturers simultaneously deciding to include internal modem cards from Boca's competitors, its annual profits dropped sharply—falling from $153 million in fiscal year 1996 to $70 million in fiscal years 1997 and 1998. Under Zalenski, Boca attempt a turnaround by pivoting to software development, and, later, the manufacture of Web access set-top boxes for television sets. [2] Zalenski resigned as CEO from the company in January 2000, [17] being replaced by Robert W. Ferguson. [19]

In October 2000, Boca Research's name was changed to Inprimis, Inc., adopting the name of Boca's set-top box manufacturing division for the entire company. [20] [21] Inprimis was acquired by Ener1 in January 2002. [22]

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References

  1. 1 2 Brack, Elliot (June 15, 1997). "Captains of industry giving money and more". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: 9 – via ProQuest.
  2. 1 2 Pounds, Steve (March 29, 1999). "Making a .com-Back". Palm Beach Post: 16 – via ProQuest.
  3. 1 2 Lunan, Charles (October 2, 1989). "Computer Firm Keeps Low Profile: Boca Research Focuses on Low-Cost Circuit Units". Sun Sentinel: 4 – via ProQuest.
  4. 1 2 McNair, Jim (June 15, 1986). "The IBM Connection: Big Blue Draws High-Tech Firms to Boca Raton". Sun Sentinel: 1D – via ProQuest.
  5. ↑ Lorek, L. A. (October 1, 1995). "Silicon Beach Fights Erosion: Smaller Firms in S. Florida Seek to Replace High-Tech Departures". Sun Sentinel: 1G – via ProQuest.
  6. 1 2 Lunan, Charles (August 1, 1994). "Boca Research Expanding, Seeks to Halt Falling Profits". Sun Sentinel: 20B – via ProQuest.
  7. ↑ Lorek, L. A. (September 3, 1995). "Company Expands in a Growth Industry: Boca Research". Sun Sentinel: 3G – via ProQuest.
  8. ↑ "New Securities Issues". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company: B7. February 26, 1993 – via ProQuest.
  9. 1 2 Staff writer (May 20, 1996). "Boca Research seeking new products that 'sizzle'". Palm Beach Post: 20 – via ProQuest.
  10. ↑ "Boca Research Gets Motorola Executive: Technology Company Names President". Sun Sentinel: 2D. September 15, 1994 – via ProQuest.
  11. ↑ "Boca Research head Timothy Farris resigns". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company: B14. April 28, 1995 – via ProQuest.
  12. ↑ Lorek, L. A. (June 23, 1995). "Moving Modems: Heavy Worldwide Demand Forces Boca Research to Expand". Sun Sentinel: 1D – via ProQuest.
  13. ↑ Quain, John R. (June 13, 1995). "Telephone Meets Sound Card". PC Magazine. 14 (11). Ziff-Davis: 152 – via Google Books.
  14. 1 2 3 "Talks Ended for Purchase of Hayes Microcomputer". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company: B3. August 25, 1995 – via ProQuest.
  15. 1 2 Fisher, Lawrence M. (August 25, 1995). "2 Computer Modem Makers Abandon Talks on a Merger". The New York Times: D6 – via ProQuest.
  16. ↑ Staff writer (June 19, 1998). "Boca Research finalizes acquisition". Miami Herald. Miami Herald Publishing: C1.
  17. 1 2 Stieghorst, Tom (January 20, 2000). "Boca Research CEO Quits as Firm Shifts Focus". Sun Sentinel: 3D – via ProQuest.
  18. ↑ Pounds, Stephen (August 2, 2000). "Boca Research Sells Last Modem Arm". The Palm Beach Post: 10B – via ProQuest.
  19. ↑ Heroux, Marcia (September 30, 2000). "Name's Official: Inprimis Board Also Picks Surprise CEO". Sun Sentinel: 29A – via ProQuest.
  20. ↑ "Recent Stock-Listing Changes". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company: C20. October 10, 2000 – via ProQuest.
  21. ↑ Circelli, Deborah; Phil Galewitz; Amy Martinez; Jeff Ostrowski; Paul Owers; Stephen Pounds; Linda Rawls; David Sedore (December 31, 2000). "And the Loser Is...: Our Dubious Achievement Awards Give Stinkers Their Due". Sun Sentinel: 1F – via ProQuest.
  22. ↑ Winter, Christine (January 5, 2002). "Fort Lauderdale, Fla., High-Tech Firm to Grow with Acquisition". Knight Ridder Tribune Business News: 1 – via ProQuest.
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