Norsk Data’s two year decline seems to have been halted, although hardly reversed, with revenue for the second half of 1989 at $210m and an operating loss of $22.5m, compared with a first half loss of $33m. Total revenue for 1989 was $380m, and after net charges of $9.1m and an extraordinary gain of $3.9m, the pretax loss for the year was $61m. Norsk Data says that the 7% improvement in debt-to-equity ratio to 40% was achieved through more active asset management, and the company is satisfied with its cash reserves of $139m. Net debt has also been improved, down from $139m to $93m. Norsk Data acknowledge that the still daunting loss was achieved by cost cutting, restructuring, and the shedding of 1,500 staff. Some 600 employees went in the second half of 1989, 300 in Norway, and the remainder across Europe, with 75 of those in the UK. The company now employs 2,700 people and says that no further cuts are expected in 1990. Norsk Data is keen to emphasise that it is no longer a traditional manufacturer, but has evolved into a systems integrator. During the second half of 1989 it focussed on vertical markets where it has an edge, on decentralising resources, and on building partnerships. The latter has borne fruit with the establishment of Info Medica, a joint venture with Communidata, previously a competitor in the local authority health market, and in the establishment of Dolphin Server Technology. Dolphin is now delivering its Uniline 88 range to be in volume product-ion by April, and expects to ship 150 systems in the coming year. Norsk Data has reorganised its operations into private sector business, central government, local government, and Comtec, in addition to ServiceTeam, SystemTeam, and DataShop. It says that the product portfolio now comprises an industry standard hardware system and hardware-independent tools targeted at vertical markets. The company claims that the benefits of reorganisation will show in 1990, and believes that the break-even is within reach. New orders in the second half of 1989 stood at $188m, with West Germany being a significant contributor, and the German CAD/CAM operation is growing signficantly. Norsk Data refused to divulge the costs of restructuring, choosing to include that figure in operating costs, and also refused to confirm that it would have been in profit without these costs.
