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Tom Hinchcliffe: Tom Hinchcliffe is Managing Director of ICL High Performance Technology
ICL High Performance Technology was originally a research and development unit of multinational computer company ICL, acquired by Fujitsu in 1990. It became the mainframe computer development division in the 1980s, and an autonomous business unit in January 1992. Its main business today is producing corporate computer systems, principally for the financial services, local and central government, public utilities and retail markets. Its best known product is the Series 39, a powerful mainframe which uses ICL's OpenVME operating system.
High Performance Technology (HPT) has about 25 per cent of the UK large computer systems market and a worldwide installed base of over 1,800 systems, typically sold to information technology or data centre departments of large companies via ICL sales units.
Turnover in 1994 was more than Pounds 100 million, based on inter-company transfer prices. HPT employs over 1,000 people at its site in West Gorton, Manchester.
In 1995 HPT became a division of the ICL High Performance Systems group which includes direct sales operations.
Tom Hinchcliffe, HPT managing director, has been with ICL and its founder companies throughout his career, holding a number of senior research and development and general management positions. He has notably been responsible for the development of the highly successful Series 39 mainframe range, elements of which have been recognized by three Queen's Awards for Technological Achievement in 1985, 1988 and 1993. His consistent commitment to quality improvement led to ICL HPT winning the 1995 UK Quality Award.
The following article contains a summary of the key points made in Tom Hinchcliffe's presentation at the British Quality Foundation's Striving for Excellence winners conference. The aim of the presentation was to share some of ICL HPT's experiences on the journey towards business excellence.
ICL plc is an information technology company specializing in systems integration in selected markets, supported by its services and technology businesses. Operating in over 80 countries worldwide, with 23,000 employees, ICL generated revenues of Pounds 2.65 billion in 1994.
ICL HPT is ICL's research and development centre in West Gorton, two miles from the centre of Manchester.
The West Gorton site was, for many years, a research and development unit controlled centrally by ICL. From the 1980s...