The Ultimate Corp. 717 Ridgedale Avenue East Hanover, New Jersey 07936 Telephone: (201) 887-9222 Fax: (201) 887-6139 Dun's Number: 09-497-2445 Date Founded: 1978 CORPORATE STRATEGIC DIRECTION During fiscal years 1990, 1989, and 1988, R&D expenditure was $5.8 million, $6.7 million, and $5.5 million, respectively. These figures respectively The Ultimate Corp. maikets and distributes worksta­ represented 2,8, 3.3, and 2.6 percent of total revenue. tions and midrange computer systems designed for R&D activities are directed toward enhancement of business database management Ultimate also markets the performance and functionality of Ultimate's oper­ a line of software products for its operating systems. ating system software and in^lementation of such In May 1990, the Company was officially organized software on a broader range of hardware. R&D into four operating divisions: Systems, Customer activities also focus on the refinement of Ultimate's Service, Professional Services, and Financial Serv­ version of the PICK operating system and toward the ices. The Systems Division is responsible for world­ Conq>any's new strategic platforms. wide sales of minicomputer systems designed for database management These systems feature the Ultimate Operating System, the Con^any's enhanced More detailed information is available in Tables 1 version of the PICK operating system. This division through 3, which appear after "Business Segment is also responsible for the worldwide distribution of Strategic Direction" and present corporate highlights vertical-niche applications software through indepen­ and revenue by region and distribution channel. dent and Company-owned dealers. The Customer Table 4, a comprehensive financial statement, is at the Service Division is responsible for all contract service end of diis backgrounder. operations in die United States. The Professional Services Division is responsible for specialized developmoit software, education and training opera­ tions, and systems consulting. Finally, fiie Rnancial Services Division is responsible for leasing, rental, BUSINESS SEGMENT STRATEGIC and other spedaJized financial programs. DIRECTION Total revenue in fiscal 1990 increased $9.8 millicm* Midrange Computers to $209.7 million as opposed to revenue of $199.9 million in fiscal 1989. Overall product reve­ Ultimate markets PICK-based systems on Bull nue (including hardware, software, supplies, and oth­ XPS-IOO and DPS/6 systems, and minicomputers er) increased 1.4 percent to $135.1 million in fiscal based on tiie Digital Equipment CoiporaticHi (DEC) 1990 as opposed to $133.2 million in fiscal 1989. LSI central processing unit The Ultimate Operating Service revenue increased 11.9 percent to $74.6 mil­ System enables users to run PICK-based applications. lion from $66.7 million in fiscal 1989. Product reve­ intimate also sells versions of die ULTAx (UNIX- nue constituted 64.4 percent of total revome; service based) operating environment as part of ftiUy con­ revenue constituted 35.6 percent Net income totaled figured systems on the BuU DPX/2 systems. In March $125,000 in 1990 as opposed to a loss of $13.0 1989, Ultimate began selling versions of the ULT/ix million in fiscal 1989. Ultimate employed 730 people as part of fiilly configured systems on the IBM RT during fiscal 1990. series of computers. Users of these systems may run PICK-based applications software in the UNIX oper­ *A]1 dollar amounts are in US doUais. ating environment Uldmate markets versions of tfte SCA 0008609 ©1990 Dataquest Incorporated The Ultimate Corp. Ultimate/370 Operating System either separately or as of the Ultimate Operating System and the ULTAx part of fully configured systems for use with IBM operating environment 9370 and 4300 computers. DEC LSI-Based Systems Operating System Software Ultimate's DEC LSI-based systems are assembled Ultimate markets diree operating systems: the Ulti­ and tested by Ultimate. They consist of central mate Operating System, the Ultimate/370 Operating processing units manufactured for Ultimate by DEC. System, and the Sequoia Open Architecture Operat­ ing System. Each operating system implementation is IBM-Based Systems based upon Ultimate's original enhanced version of die PICK operating system and is specific to the Ultimate markets a version of the PICK operating hardware system it resides on. Ultimate enhanced the system for systems based on the IBM 370 architec­ PICK operating system software through the addition ture, including IBM 4300 and 9370 computers. In of a number of features including an applications 1988, Ultimate entered into an agreement with IBM generator with an underlying fourth-generation lan­ for the purchase of IBM products including IBM guage to update and maintain files. The Ultimate and 4300 and 9370 computers. IBM products may be Ultimate/370 Operating Systems perform as relational remarketed by Ultimate's subsidiaries and dealers to databases with English-like (fourth-generation) lan­ end users only as part of a system that includes the guage capabilities. Two features included in Ulti­ Ultimate Operating System and on application soft­ mate's relational database are Ultimate Update, which ware packages tiiat have been approved by IBM allows die database to be updated or maintained, and Ultimate entered into a one-year agreement with IBM Ultimate Recall, which allows access to data in user- for the purchase of the IBM RT and RS/6000 series of designed report formats. The Company's ULTfix is a computers in June 1990. These computers may be native implementation of the PICK operating system remarketed by Ultimate's subsidiaries and dealers to in the UNIX environment This product serves as a end users only as part of a system that includes the bridge between the PICK and UNIX operating ULTAix operating environment and on q)plications environments and enables users of this system to software packages that have been approved by IBM. access information from a variety of programs. Based on UMX, ULTAix is a PICK-compatible relational database management system as well as an applica­ Coprocessors tions development system. Ultimate markets a 16-bit coprocessor, a dual proces­ sor configuration, and a 32-bit coprocessor. The coprocessors are developed by Ultimate in conjunc­ Hardware tion witii diiid-party contractors. Bull-Based Systems Peripherals Ultimate's Bull-based systems include standard hard­ Ultimate purchases certain peripheral equipment, ware marketed by Bull as the Level 6/DPS including CRTs and line printers, from standard 6 miniconq>uter that is adapted to permit use of the peripheral suppliers. Ultimate Operating System by die addition of a coprocessor. This coprocessor improves execution speed over diat of prior implementations of the Ulti­ Further Information mate Operating System. Developed by Ultimate in conjunction with Bull, it is manufactured for Ultimate For more information about The Ultimate Corp.'s by Bull. Ultimate also sells Bull's fully configured business segments, please contact the iqipropriate DPX/2 systems widi a software-only implementation Dataquest industry service. SCA ©1990 Dataquest Incorporated 0008609 The Ultimate Corp. Tkble 1 Five-Year Corporate Highlights (Thousands of US Dollars) 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Five-Year Revenue $139,915.4 $171,131.4 $209,168.0 $199,865.0 $209,703.0 Percent Change 22.31 22.23 (4.45) 4.92 Capital Expenditure NA NA NA NA NA Percent of Revenue NA NA NA NA NA R&D Expenditure NA $4,500.0 $5,500.0 $6,700.0 $5,782.0 Percent of Revenue NA 2.63 2.63 3.35 2.76 Number of Employees 281 281 738 655 730 Revenue ($K)/Employee $497.92 $609.01 $283.43 $305.14 $305.14 Net Income $14,449.7 $13,784.7 $13,016.0 ($13,021.0) $125.0 Percent Change (4.60) (5.58) (200.04) NA 1990 Fiscal Year Ql Q2 Q3 Q4 Quarterly Revenue $49,020.00 $51,629.00 $50,680.00 $58,374.00 Quarterly Profit $1,007.00 ($648.00) ($1,701.00) $1,467.00 NA = Not available Sontce: The Ultiinate Coip. Ammal Repoits and Fanns 10-K Dataqoest (1990) Table 2 Revenue by Geographic Region (Percent) Region 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Nordi America 83.78 80.91 77.61 76.12 77.49 International 16.22 19.09 22.39 23.88 22.51 Europe 3.30 8.25 10.69 1224 15.06 Asia/Pacific 12.92 10.83 11.65 11.30 7.45 ROW 0 0.01 0.05 0.34 0 Source: The Ultiniate Coip. Ammal Reports and Fonns 10-K Dataqnest (1990) Table 3 Revenue by Distribution Channel (Percent) Channel 1989 1990 Direct Sales 66.60 NA Indirect Sales 33.40 NA Distributors/Dealers 33.40 NA NA - Not availaUe Somce: Dataqnest (1990) SCA 0008609 ©1990 Dataquest Incorporated The Ultiinate Corp. 1989 SALES OFHCE LOCATIONS ALLIANCES, JOINT VENTURES, AND LICENSING AGREEMENTS North America—9 Europe—2 Asia/Pacific—1 7990 IBM Ultimate entered into a one-year agreement with IBM for the purchase of IBM RT and RS/6000 series computers in June 1990. MANUFACTURING LOCATIONS The Ultimate Corp. does not use manufacturing 1989 facilities. Sequoia Systems Ultimate became the exclusive worldwide distribu­ tor of Sequoia Systems' PICK-based systems. The agreement is subject to the tight of certain existing Sequoia distributors to continue selling Sequoia's SUBSIDIARIES PICK-based systems. North America Hewlett-Packard (HP) Ultimate and UP established an agreement for Hands-Qn Learning Corp. (United States) Ultimate to resell HP's full line of HP 9000 Series The Ultimate Development Corp. (United States) 800 multiuser minicomputers. Ultimate became The Ultimate Disc Corp. (United States) HP's exclusive worldwide distributor of solutions The Ultimate International Corp. (United States) based on die PICK operating system. The Ultimate Product Corp. (United States) Ultimate Canada, Inc. (Canada) VMark Software Inc. Ultimate Con^uter Supplies, Inc.