Local high-tech industry diverse, thriving

LONGMONT — From satellites to prescription drugs, Longmont is home to a number of thriving yet very different technology companies.

DigitalGlobe Inc., for example, develops and launches satellites equipped with high-power cameras that take images of the Earth that are sold for commercial purposes. And a little more down to Earth, Array BioPharma Inc. discovers and develops prescription drugs.

Longmont has a strong base of biotechnology companies as well as manufacturers, from chemical to high-precision equipment makers, as well as computer software and peripherals companies, machine shops, and semiconductor and electronic component companies. It all adds up to a diverse workforce.

DigitalGlobe, the company with an eye in the sky, has undergone a few name changes after being founded in 1993 as WorldView Imaging by Walter Scott. It later merged with a group from Ball Aerospace to become EarthWatch and then was renamed DigitalGlobe.

In the late ’90s, the company endured two colossal setbacks.

“We had two satellites fail,´ said Herb Saterlee, president. “We had to recover. We treat our customers right and were trying to get the business off the ground.”

That expression can be taken figuratively and literally.

“We were in a development mode for (several) years,” Saterlee said. “Transferring that to a customer-focused business is not easily done.”

Large customer service and public relations departments help DigitalGlobe focus on getting its product to clients such as government organizations, which can use the images for disaster relief and planning communities.

Saterlee declined to comment on the privately held company’s revenue, but he said DigitalGlobe employs 250 in Longmont and a few employees in Mississippi and Washington, D.C.

Currently, one DigitalGlobe satellite orbits Earth. The company plans to build a second by the end of summer, depending upon consumer demand.

Tricia Haugeto, an Array BioPharma company representative, said the biotech’s revenues in the first quarter of 2002 bode well for Array. The company’s revenue for last fiscal year (which ended in June 2001) was $17 million, but first-quarter 2002 revenue was impressive for Array. “We’ve seen dramatic increase each quarter,” Haugeto said. “March’s quarterly revenue was around $9.5 million.”

Founded in 1998 by President Kevin Koch, Chief Operating Officer David Snitman and Vice President of Chemistry Tony Piscopio, Array employs 250 in Boulder County.

Haugeto said increased demand from aging baby boomers is one factor, along with “a very aggressive recruiting plan.” The company anticipates hiring between 40 and 60 scientists annually for the next three years.

The company’s facilities in Longmont and Boulder are slated for expansion this year.

Although much smaller in size, Chemquest Inc., also is doing well despite the economy.

“It hasn’t affected us at all,´ said Danuta Schloemer, who founded the company in 1991. Chemquest researches prescription drugs for other companies.

“Coming up with new ways of testing drugs is our biggest challenge,” Schloemer said. “We patent our technologies for developing drugs.”

Including a branch office in Lodz, Poland, the company employs four. Schloemer declined to comment on Chemquest’s revenue.

The slow economy has been a much bigger issue for technology manufacturers such as DBM.

Initializing “Demand-based Manufacturing,” DBM has performed contract manufacturing of electronic components since 1996. The company is also capable of serving biomedical companies through its clean room facility.

“In terms of contract manufacturing, companies aren’t building new but pulling from excess inventories,´ said Gary Hamor, executive vice president and chief technology officer.

“We saw a downturn in the requirement to do manufacturing,” he said. “We’ve struggled to get new customers and to keep the ones we have to stay afloat.”

The company’s revenue has averaged $1 million to $2.5 million over the last few years, according to Hamor. He describes his business strategy as maintaining a standard of “100 percent quality and on-time delivery,” Hamor said. “Contract manufacturers struggle with this.”

The company was founded by Warren Siemers and Hamor. DBM employs 13 and functions as a subsidiary of StratoTech Corp., based in Loveland.

Maintaining quick turnaround time and high quality also has helped Reliant Manufacturing LLC, according to founder Rick Glassman. “We are growing in this economy,” he said.

But he believes that the contract manufacturing company’s focus is the main catalyst.

“We offer a broad spectrum of services,” Glassman said. “We do pre-prototype and volume manufacturing.” The year-old, privately held company employs 80. Glassman declined to comment on the revenue.

QSC Systems Inc., another contract manufacturer, also is fighting the economic slowdown. “Business is about 30 percent slower,´ said Richard Gall, president of the 15-employee company. QSC manufactures electronic sub-assemblies for larger companies.

Although the industry is tough now, Gall is optimistic about the future.

“Electronic manufacturing is on the upswing,” he said. “I think we may be back to normal the first quarter of next year.”

But Gall views “normal” in his industry as the amount of business he did in 1999.

“We had an inflated economy (shortly after that),” he said, “where people would come in and never ask about pricing. They just wanted to pay anything and get it done. They were dealing with fake money.”

To provide a more stable income, Gall relies upon 40 companies in many different industries. “I make a conscious effort to keep a diverse customer base,” he said. Gall, who founded the company in 1990, declined to comment on revenue.

Staying active in the company’s day-to-day labor also helps Gall keep in touch with QSC’s needs.

“I’m a working president,” he said. “I keep my hands involved in the details of the company all the time.” When something goes wrong, Gall is quick to know because he’s on the shop floor all the time. “That’s one reason for our longevity,” he said.

His biggest challenge is maintaining the three-legged stool of quality, value and timeliness.

“I’ve heard someone say, ‘You can have something good, fast or cheap, but you can’t have all three at once,’ ” he said. “Maintaining productivity and quality together is a balancing act.”

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