The Gazette from Montreal, Quebec, Canada • 108

M6 CbCttaKUC, Montreal, Thursday, November 27, 1986 Dorval firm beats corporate giants to win lucrative U.S. Army contract BUY AN '86 HYUNDAI AND WE'LL GIVE YOU A FACTORY REBATE UP T0 1,000. BIG ONES IMMEDIATELY 5. fSSnin EXCEL Htm GL GLS IN STOCK $750. GL GLS IN STOCK By KAREN JANIGAN of The Gazette Electronic Systems Ltd.

President Lome Trottier was at a loss for words. His Dorval company had just won the largest contract of its 10-year existence a deal with the U.S. Army that could go as high as $310 million and he was feeling good. All day long, congratulatory calls were coming in on the contract, which calls for Matrox to provide up to 50,000 special computers, married with laser-driven video-disc players, for training army personnel. But when Trottier walked into the cafeteria for a celebration, he was bowled over the roomful of employees burst into prolonged loud applause.

What to do next "I didn't expect this," said the quiet, slim electrical engineer as he tried to figure out what to do next. Meanwhile, Trottier's partner and chairman of the board, Branko Matic, was being paged to report to the cafeteria. The publicity-shy Matic was keeping a low profile, which is representative of the firm. Matrox first elevated its low-profile when it entered the West Island Chamber of Commerce Accolades '86 competition. It was named "business of the year" and also won in the "export" and "new business to the West Island" categories.

Trottier, who has a master's degree in electrical engineering from McGill University, said: "An award is nice, but it doesn't bring in contracts." But Trottier and Matic have a flair It is especially well known for its graphics cards. Trottier said Matrox had a minor client about five or six years ago who used the company's graphic cards. "What he was trying to do flabbergasted me," Trottier said. "He wanted us to develop a special card that would allow him to store information on video-disc." Trottier said the man was a Mormon businessman in Utah who claimed to have been an agent of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.

"He was a little bit of a strange character," Trottier said. "Anyway, we developed the custom board (card) but he had gone bankrupt." So Matrox had a new product but no customer until four years ago, when Trottier learned that the U.S. Army was looking for a system that could deliver what Matrox had already begun developing. Changed specifications After the first bidding process, which ended about 2Vfc years ago, Philips and Matrox were the only companies left. The army changed specifications and requirements and reopened the call for tenders, and Sony and Matrox were the only two bidders.

Sony outweighs Matrox on the international scale it had $1.75 billion in sales in 1984. "They were very unusual specifications, and very few companies were willing to spend the money and take the time without a reasonable assurance that they were going to get something," Trottier said. Now that the U.S. Army has purchased the system and the air force and navy may follow suit, Trottier is hoping more companies will buy the systems for educational purposes. for making things happen.

Outlasting Philips Ltd. of the Netherlands and besting the giant Sony Corp. of Japan in the bidding war for the army contract is an example of that talent. "This contract will help put us on the map as a significant company in the electronics business," Trottier said in an interview. "We won't be just another company, but considered a leader in the industry." The two were working at Marconi Ltd.

when they decided to strike out on, their own in 1976 and started a business in Town of Mount Royal. By the end of the first year, Matrox employed seven people and had sales of $230,000. Now it employs about 300 people with sales of $31.1 million and an annual growth rate of about 30 per cent. The first year of the U.S. Army contract is worth $17.5 about 100 more people will be added to the payroll.

If the army likes the computers, which provide instant and random access to still and moving pictures, sound, graphics and data, then the negotiated contract for subsequent years might be taken up; the army can commit funds only on a yearly basis. If all five years are taken up, 200 to 400 new jobs will be created at the Dorval facility, which the pair built two years ago. The story behind the development of the computer-driven video-disc system is a little bizarre. Matrox has earned its reputation by developing and manufacturing printed circuit-boards called cards that are added to computer systems to enhance and expand their capabilities. STELLAR GSL IN STOCK WE'RE APPROACHABLE EASY ACCESS WE'VE BEEN HERE SINCE DAY 1 TOP 5 IN CANADA FOR SALES PERFORMANCE (1 984-1 985) GOOD SELECTION OF MODELS TO CHOOSE FROM PROVEN SERVICE RECORD $1,000.

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