Erroneous impression in ‘build vs. buy’ issue
Thank you very much for your coverage of the exciting new developments at Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing in the November 2004 issue of Military & Aerospace Electronics (“Curtiss-Wright consolidates company acquisitions into ‘centers of excellence,’” p. 3).
There was though, a statement in the article that we feel requires comment for accuracy. During the interview when we were asked, “Who is your biggest competitor?” We responded that in the board and system market the most important issue is always the customer’s choice between building or buying an embedded solution, and that this dynamic makes a vendor’s customer the “biggest competitor.” Unfortunately, the “build vs. buy” discussion in our response was inadvertently left out of the published article, possibly leaving the reader with the erroneous and incorrect impression that we compete directly with our customers. Nothing could be further from the truth. The industry-leading companies that now comprise Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing - including Dy 4, Synergy Microsystems, Vista Controls, Systran, Peritek, and Primagraphics - have all been best-of-breed vendors for more than 20 years.
The growth and continued success of these companies, now organized as Embedded Computing, is the direct result of providing customers with innovative, cost-effective alternatives to the burden and expense of developing their hardware and software solutions in-house. Our customers know us as partners committed to their own success.
Tom Quinly
President, Curtiss-Wright Controls
Embedded Computing Group
Leesburg, Va.
