Dear tjgill999-ga,
Thank you for getting back to me. I?m afraid I?ve come to the end of
the road with your projects. You say that you were able to find on
your own 80% of the information I?ve posted. Researchers have no way
to know what you already know. We operate based on the questions
asked. Unfortunately my repeated attempts at clarification and trying
to find a better way of framing the large research projects you?ve
posted to improve the odds of you getting the information you need and
to help researchers with setting clear parameters and expectations of
payment didn?t work out. (I believe pafalafa-ga, one of our
outstanding market research experts, also tried to pitch in with
coming up with ways to resolve this dilemma on your Voicetek question
but gave up.)
I answered 12 of the 21 questions you asked on Packet Engines. I took
a risk and worked on spec because of the prospect of figuring out a
formula for a mutually satisfactory solution for how to get as many
answers as possible at a reasonable price for your eight company
research project. Based on what I discovered doing the research, I
would not have attempted this chunk of work for under $100. You say
it?s worth $60. Some of the items I found were easy but some were
quite difficult. The problem is that it?s not easy to guess ahead of
time with companies that are defunct.
The remaining 9 questions are quite difficult, if not impossible,
without access to the expensive databases. I wonder if it might not be
worthwhile for you to subscribe to the one you know has the kind of
information you need and get the research done more efficiently than
trying to troll for the hidden and scattered information on public
websites. I don?t think you?re likely to get any researchers to make
further attempts unless you redefine the parameters and increase the
price.
Given all that, here?s the supporting information for the questions
I?ve answered. I wish you well for your challenging research project.
All the best.
~ czh ~
=====================================
ALCATEL ACQUISITION OF PACKET ENGINES
=====================================
http://www.alcatel.com/vpr/index.jhtml?body=http://www.home.alcatel.com/vpr/archive.nsf/Archiveuk/470E96820D5C3A2FC1256A5300609504?opendocument
ALCATEL TO ACQUIRE PACKET ENGINES, A HIGH-PERFORMANCE INTERNET TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER
Paris, France and Spokane, Washington, October 12, 1998 -- Alcatel and
Packet Engines, Inc. today jointly announced that they have entered
into a definitive agreement under which Alcatel will acquire Packet
Engines, Inc. in a cash transaction. Packet Engines delivers one of
the highest performance wire-speed routing and Gigabit Ethernet
solutions available today. This acquisition is in line with Alcatel's
previously stated strategy to enter the IP market with closely
controlled technologies and to expand its presence in the U.S. Packet
Engines' product lines will also complement Alcatel's current data and
enterprise offering with high-end routers and Gigabit Ethernet LAN
switches.
The transaction has an implied value of $315 million, which includes
the equity purchase price as well as a Technology Development
Incentive Plan. The Incentive Plan will leverage Packet Engines'
outstanding IP know-how to develop new products broadening Alcatel's
networking solutions.
Following the acquisition of Packet Engines, the company will retain
its name and continue to be headquartered in the Spokane area. Krish
Prabhu, who is currently President and CEO of Alcatel USA, Inc., will
serve as Chairman of the company, while Bernard Daines, founder of
Packet Engines, will remain CEO.
Packet Engines, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in
Spokane, WA, where it employs 200 people. The company develops
networking solutions for service provider, ISP and enterprise networks
delivering gigabit performance and mission-critical reliability. The
company provides a complete suite of high-performance gigabit
networking solutions including the PowerRail family of Gigabit
Ethernet switches, and G-NIC II network interface cards. The PowerRail
family delivers Infinite RoutingTM;, mission-critical reliability, and
Application-Enabled NetworkingTM. The PowerRail products began
shipping in the second quarter of 1998. These products represent the
industry's highest performance and most reliable suite of enterprise
routing switches, and are specifically designed to meet the growing
demands of enterprise network backbones and data centers.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.alcatel.com/vpr/index.jhtml?body=http://www.home.alcatel.com/vpr/archive.nsf/Archiveuk/E86D2C76E888C027C1256A5300608FEB?opendocument
ALCATEL COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF PACKET ENGINES
Paris - December 14, 1998 - Alcatel has finalized its acquisition of
Packet Engines, Inc., a Spokane, WA ? based innovator of Gigabit
Ethernet and routing switch technology.
On October 12, Alcatel announced it would acquire all of Packet
Engines' outstanding capital and employee stock options in a cash
transaction of a total value of $315 million. Completion was subject
to the clearance from the Antitrust Division of the American
Department of Justice and to the approval by Packet Engines'
shareholders, both of which have now been received.
Following the acquisition of Packet Engines, the company will retain
its name and continue to be headquartered in the Spokane area. Krish
Prabhu, President and CEO of Alcatel USA, Inc., will serve as Chairman
of the company, while Bernard Daines, founder of Packet Engines,
will remain CEO.
=====================================
PACKET ENGINES BACKGROUND INFORMATION
=====================================
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:wILh7NJUXmYJ:www.ibg.networkcomputing.com/companyInfo.jhtml%3Fcompany_id%3D7828+%22packet+engines%22&hl=en
Packet Engines
11707 E. Sprague Suite 101
Spokane, WA 99206
USA
Phone: (509) 777-7000
FAX: (509) 777-7001
URL: http://www.packetengines.com
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=129&site=lightreading
Bernard Daines
Introduction
FEBRUARY 16, 2000
The Light Reading Interview
In The Spotlight: Bernard Daines
The King of Gigabit Ethernet reckons he missed out on a $3 billion IPO
by selling Packet Engines too early. Now he talks to Light Reading
about:
-- How investors and employees ended up forcing him to sell Packet
Engines before he was ready.
-- How Alcatel reneged on all the promises it gave Daines prior to
the sale, put "mad man" Steve Kim from Xylan in charge, and sent
Packet Engines into a decline.
-- The lessons he's learned and how things will be different with his
third startup.
-- How World Wide Packets aims to trigger the convergence of the Internet and TV.
He sold his Fast Ethernet startup, Grand Junction Networks, to Cisco
Systems Inc. (http://www.cisco.com) for $350 million in 1995. Then he
founded a Gigabit switch vendor, Packet Engines, and sold it to
Alcatel SA (http://www.alcatel.fr) for $325 million in 1998.
Now, Daines is back with a third startup, World Wide Packets
(http://www.worldwidepackets.com), which was launched on January 1.
Packet Engines was a small, profitable company until we took funding
in June of '96 to build Gigabit switches. We built the company up to
about 225 people and then Alcatel bought us.
Light Reading: Did you want to sell Packet Engines?
Bernard Daines: I wish I could have held on against the VCs to go
public the next year like everybody else did. It's what I wanted to
do, but circumstances weren't right.
VCs always want a quick out. They see a bird in the hand or on the
table they'll take it unless they're really, really convinced they've
got the right team and everything in place to sustain an IPO. And of
course, in the fall of '98 no-one knew that '99 was going to have so
many multi-billion dollar IPOs.
I could have afforded to take the risk of saying no, we're going to
hold out for an IPO and if it doesn't work, it doesn't work. But that
wasn't the case with everybody else. The sentiment of the employees
and the investors was here's a good deal. Dollar wise it was about as
good as anybody had ever got at that time. I basically did what was
good for the group.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.spokanejournal.com/index.php?id=article&sub=595
July 30, 1998
Packet Engines, WSU join in research effort
Separately, company plans to expand its space here
Kim Stearns, Packet?s manager of business development for national
labs and universities.
Separately, Packet Engines plans to expand at Redwood Plaza at 11707
E. Sprague, where its headquarters and manufacturing facilities are
located.
Packet moved into offices on the top floor of the three-story building
on Sprague in October 1996, says Packet spokeswoman Nancy Goodspeed.
=========================================================
ALCATEL ACQUISITION VENTURE CAPITALISTS / INVESTMENT BANK
=========================================================
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/vc301.shtml
Academics, tech advisers returning to VC ranks
Friday, June 30, 2000
"Bernard thinks big," said Tom Simpson, a venture capitalist at
Northwest Venture Associates and an investor in Daines' second
company, Packet Engines. "And a guy with his track record you have to
listen to."
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.goldenkey.org/NR/rdonlyres/E441739E-FD65-4220-89EC-863A3A60E369/525/PeterHartigan.pdf
Peter Hartigan
Principal, Diamondhead Ventures
In 1995, Pete moved to the Bay Area and became 1 of a 2-person team to
help open up Battery's west coast office, where he
worked until 1997. During his 4-year tenure at Battery, Pete sourced 5
deals in software and communications segments, including successful
portfolio companies like Packet Engines, a leader in Gigabit Ethernet,
which sold to Alcatel for over $300M and returned over 20X to
investors.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.findwealth.com/recognized-leaders-in-supply-chain-58599pr.html
Founded in 1983, Battery Ventures is a national venture capital firm
that specializes in investments in the software, communications, and
Internet/ e-commerce industries. The firm's exclusive focus and
expertise in these industries enables it to identify and invest in
emerging companies with leading products in exciting markets. Battery
Ventures is one of the leading high tech venture capital firms in the
country, having closed its fifth fund in April 1999, raising $400
million from an elite group of limited partners. Battery's portfolio
investments include: Akamai Technologies, Altra Energy Technologies,
Allegiance Telecom, Aurum Software, Banyan Systems, Brooktrout
Technology, Concord Communications, Focal Communications, FORE
Systems, HNC Software, In Focus Systems, Infoseek, Nextel
Communications, Packet Engines (Alcatel) and XCOM Technologies (Level
3 Communications). Battery has offices in Wellesley, Mass. and San
Mateo, Calif. For more information on Battery Ventures, visit
http://www.battery.com/.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.battery.com/default.asp?section=contact&file=overview
Battery Ventures Boilerplate
About Battery Ventures
Founded in 1983, Battery Ventures is a leading venture capital firm
focused on investing in technology companies at all stages of growth
from seed to later stage and tech buyouts. With a team of over 20
experienced investment professionals, Battery leverages its people,
expertise and capital to actively guide companies to category
dominance. The firm has invested in over 180 companies worldwide
across information technology industries. From its offices in
Wellesley, MA and San Mateo, CA the partnership manages over $2
billion in committed capital, including its new fund of $450 million.
For more information, visit http://www.battery.com.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.battery.com/default.asp?section=portfolio&file=infrastructure#packetengines
Battery Investments, Infrastructure Technologies
Network & Wireless Infrastructure
Packet Engines, Inc. - Spokane, WA (acquired by Alcatel)
Gigabit ethernet switching
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.forbes.com/ipodata/index.shtml
http://www.forbes.com/ipodata/vc_returns.shtml
IPO Bubble Bath of the 1990s
Venture Capital Investors Can Reap Huge Returns....
Though data can be hard to gather on venture capital funds, the best
are worth the digging. Crosspoint Venture Partners tops this list,
paying out $29.60 for every $1 invested. All 20 firms responded to a
Forbes survey of 550 venture capital firms*.
Fund: Northwest Venture Associates/Inland Northwest Investors
Firm: Packet Engines
***** See chart for stats.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.nwva.com/
Northwest Venture Associates
http://www.nwva.com/portfolio/past.html
Packet Engines (Sold to Alcatel) Gigabit Ethernet switches and network
interface cards, which significantly increase the speed of equipment
in a standard Ethernet network.
Co-investors: Mayfield, Battery Ventures.
-------------------------------------------------
http://news.com.com/Megabucks+for+Gigabit+Ethernet/2100-1001_3-235147.html
Megabucks for Gigabit Ethernet
Published: October 4, 1996, 7:15 PM PDT
Packet Engines: $7.55 million from such investors like Battery & Mayfield;
http://www.mayfield.com/home.html
Yogen Dalal, Managing Director
Past portfolio successes ? Packet Engines
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.matr.net/article-10186.html
Capital ideas - Northwest Venture Associates manager Tom Simpson
invests his time - and his clients? hopes - in the future
March 8, 2004
One of Spokane's busiest capitalists starts his day early. Two or
three times each week, Tom Simpson, the managing partner of Northwest
Venture Associates http://nwva.com/ , grabs a 5 a.m. flight to Seattle
and runs through a hectic schedule of meetings and company visits.
One huge win was the sale of Packet Engines in 1998 to French telecom
giant Alcatel for $325 million. NWVA had invested around $1 million to
help Daines grow the company. The Alcatel purchase gave NWVA's
investors a nine-to-one return on their capital, said Daines.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.fundingpost.com/breakfast/bios.asp?event=48
Tom Simpson, Managing Partner, Northwest Venture Associates
Northwest Venture Associates Managing Partner Tom Simpson has 15 years
of experience as a venture capitalist and investment banker building
and serving successful Northwest businesses in several markets. Prior
to forming Northwest Venture Associates, he was a managing director in
Dain Rauscher Wessels' Seattle-based investment banking group, where
he spearheaded the fundraising of more than $350 million for several
of the region's most successful emerging companies. Tom is a director
of Confirma, MessageGate, Pacific Edge Software, Sur La Table, Pet's
Choice, Telect, TeleSym, VoteHere and a former director of AdRelevance
(now NetRatings), Netpodium (now Akamai) and Packet Engines. He is a
board member and past-president of the Evergreen Venture Capital
Association, which oversees the 40 plus venture capital firms in
Washington State. Tom serves on the boards of the National Association
of Small Business Investment Companies and the Technology Alliance of
Washington. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration
from the University of Washington and a master's degree in business
administration from The Wharton School.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.seattle24x7.com/dirvc.htm
Venture Capital Firms based in the Seattle area.
Rustic Canyon Partners, formerly Staenberg Venture Funds
http://www.rusticcanyon.com/
Investments include: Adventurecycle.com, BigStep.com, Black Pearl,
Camdes, COmmand Audio, CommerceBid.com, Corrigo, Epicentric, Etera,
Evite.com, First Virtual Bank, Improvenet, Inclusion, Informed
Diagnostics, InfoSpace, Integrated Data Communications (IDC), Intrepid
Learning Systems, iSyndicate, Learning Brands, LiveBid, LizardTech,
Metrika, Micropath, NetFreight.com, Packet Engines, PhotoZone.com,
Prairielaw.com, Preview Systems, RivalNet, RocketRadio, Salu.net,
Simplexity.com, Softbook, SpecialtyMD, Spinner.com, Teledesic, Time
Domain, Tioga, Universal Access, Vetcentric.com, VoiceWeb,
WetFeet.com, YY Software, Zydeco.com, ezboard, and How2TV.com.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.prestongates.com/people/profile.asp?id=157
Robert S. Jaffe
Partner
Corporate Securities/Mergers & Acquisitions, Business Law
Seattle
Tel: (206) 370-7591
Fax: (206) 370-6092
bjaffe@prestongates.com
Download Contact Info (Vcard)
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/9.03/boutros_pr.html
Represented Packet Engines Incorporated in its merger with Alcatel
Boutros is known in M&A circles as a briefcase slammer - the kind of
negotiator who will do whatever it takes to make the other guy blink.
Credit Suisse First Boston's global head of technology M&A isn't well
known outside tech circles, but the 40-year-old Boutros is famous in
the Valley - mostly for his willingness to do whatever it takes to
close a deal.
Boutros' tech M&A team is a nearly all-male group fashioned by his
swagger into nothing short of a frat-house mentality - complete with
pledge names. The close to 70 global professionals, ranging in age
from 22 to 43, have gotten headlines for their big deals. But the
team's specialty is peddling emerging companies made up of little more
than a collection of engineers. Before it became commonplace for Cisco
to snap up prerevenue businesses for billions, Boutros hawked little
operations like Sahara Networks to Cascade for $200-plus million,
OnStream to 3Com for more than $250 million, and Packet Engines to
Alcatel for upward of $300 million. "George built his legend selling
startups with little or no revenue but huge potential," says David
Britts, once a member of the Boutros team and now a venture capitalist
with Chase Capital Partners in San Francisco. "He is the best at
creating an auction environment."
-------------------------------------------------
http://sdtelecom.org/events/eventdetail.cfm?event_id=DDA1A83A-16A5-4B37-9F9D-EAEA7EF4A7A8
David Britts, Partner, ComVentures. http://www.comventures.com
David Britts has extensive experience advising, building and investing
in leading communications technologies companies. ?. Prior to JPMorgan
Partners, David was a member of the founding team of Deutsche Morgan
Grenfell (DMG) Technology Group, which later became a part of Credit
Suisse First Boston. David established and was global head of the
communications equipment investment banking practice, working closely
with many emerging companies, including: Amati, Berkeley Networks,
Diamond Lane Communications, Ipsilon Networks, Micromuse, OnStream
Networks, Packet Engines, Rapid City, Sahara Networks, and Whitetree.
=========================
PACKET ENGINES EXECUTIVES
=========================
http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:KT5iRS8xeb4J:www.spokesmanreview.com/business/story.asp%3FID%3D35702+%22packet+engines%22&hl=en
Engineers sought for new firm
Daines starting Liberty Lake division of Linux Networx
November 4, 2004
Bernard Daines, who's already started three Spokane-area technology
companies, is looking to hire a dozen computer hardware engineers to
work at a new Liberty Lake division of the Utah company he currently
heads.
For more than two years Daines has been CEO of Linux Networx, based in
Salt Lake City. Before leaving the Inland Northwest, Daines had
started two successful hardware-development companies, Packet Engines
and World Wide Packets. He also launched Webiness, a Web development
and hosting company that he shut down in 2001, about a year after he
founded it.
Of the three companies Daines started here, only World Wide Packets is
still operating. Daines still owns stock in that company. He sold
Packet Engines in 1998 to Alcatel, which closed the Spokane office in
2003.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.windley.com/archives/2003/02/linux_networx_a.shtml
February 19, 2003
Linux Networx and Bernard Daines
I didn?t realize at the time, that Bernard had founded Grand Junction
and sold it to Cisco in 1995. He?d later sell Packet Engines to
Alcatel amid some controversy (for some interesting reading, see this
article on Bernard Daines).
I?ve recently discovered two other interesting connections. Bernard
Daines is the founder and former CEO of World Wide Packets, the
company that makes the break out boxes being used by Provo City in
their network.
Bernard Daines is also the man behind Linux Networx, perhaps the
coolest start-up in Utah at present.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.sandiegometro.com/1999/may/metro.html
Joining Wireless Knowledge as CFO is Peter Price. Most recently, Price
was v.p. of finance and CFO for Packet Engines Inc., a company for
which he headed the finance and legal teams during its $315 million
sale to Alcatel. Price was North American controller for Microsoft
from 1994-96.
-------------------------------------------------
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:nBrNLLypma8J:www.packetvideo.com/press/view.asp%3Fid%3D5+Credit+Suisse+First+Boston+%22packet+engines%22&hl=en
PACKETVIDEO ADDS SENIOR MANAGEMENT TO ACCELERATE BUSINESS GROWTH
San Diego, CA - 11.12.1999
Pete Price as chief financial officer.
Previously, Price was vice president of finance and CFO of Packet
Engines, Inc., a gigabit routing switch company. At Packet Engines,
Price successfully led a private equity financing of $16 million and
headed the finance and legal teams through the sale of Packet Engines
to Alcatel for $315 million.
=============================
ALCATEL ACQUISITION AFTERMATH
=============================
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3649/is_199905/ai_n8827784
Lawsuit, layoffs dog ever-changing Alcatel
Network World, May 31, 1999
Amid layoffs, sell-offs and a lawsuit, Alcatel this week is expected
to reorganize and rename its newly acquired data network companies in
an attempt to establish itself as a major competitor in the field.
In recent months, Paris-based Alcatel has snapped up Gigabit Ethernet
switch maker Packet Engines, LAN hardware vendor Xylan and access
device vendor Assured Access Technology. Now Alcatel is expected to
clarify how the companies fit together and is likely to consolidate
them, probably under the name Alcatel Data Solutions, industry sources
say. Details of the reorganization were not available.
As if Alcatel doesn't already have its hands full integrating several
recently acquired data network companies, the founder of one of those
firms last week filed suit against the French telecom giant.
Packet Engines' founder Bernard Daines is seeking an unspecified
amount from Alcatel, claiming the company terminated his employment
agreement without cause - by changing Daines' responsibilities and
shifting control of Packet Engines away from the Gigabit Ethernet
pioneer's Spokane,Wash., offices.
Alcatel bought Packet Engines for $325 million late last year. Daines
left the company soon afterAlcatel announced in March that it would
buy Xylan for $2 billion and make Xylan its "center of competence" for
data network gear.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.spokanejournal.com/index.php?id=article&sub=757
September 02, 1999
Daines sues Alcatel over tax liability
Suit alleges Packet?s buyer issued forms telling IRS money in escrow is income
In Daines? case, he contends he hasn?t actually received the $6
million, because it?s still being held in escrow, says William Hyslop,
one of Daines? attorneys. He says the total amount Daines is owed is
greater than $6 million held in other escrow accounts.
The lawsuit is related to, yet separate from, another lawsuit Daines
filed earlier this summer in Spokane County Superior Court against
Packet Engines. In that complaint, Daines claims he is owed an
unspecified sum that is being held in escrow by the Bank of New York
as part of the $325 million sale of Packet to Alcatel. In that
complaint, Daines says he has submitted multiple requests for release
of the escrowed funds, but that Alcatel has withheld the money and is
disputing payment of it.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=8162&site=lightreading
Alcatel Settles with Daines
SEPTEMBER 17, 2001
Alcatel SA (NYSE: ALA - message board; Paris: CGEP:PA) has quietly
settled its case with Bernard Daines, ex-CEO of Packet Engines Inc.
Both parties declined to comment on the details of the settlement,
citing confidentiality agreements.
At the time he first launched his battle against Alcatel, Daines told
reporters that the acquiring company had reneged on its promises to
Packet Engines employees (see Bernard Daines). He said Alcatel
management was particularly heavy-handed in combining Packet Engines
with Xylan, another company Alcatel bought for $2 billion in 1999.
In a final irony, Alcatel last month closed the division that resulted
from the Packet Engines acquisition (see Alcatel's Packet Engines
Break Down).
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=7332&site=lightreading
Alcatel's Packet Engines Break Down
AUGUST 08, 2001
Alcatel SA (NYSE: ALA - message board; Paris: CGEP:PA) is
discontinuing development on several carrier-class products it
acquired by buying startup Packet Engines -- and the company is
looking anew at potential acquisitions in an effort to revamp its
approach to selling Ethernet equipment to telecom carriers.
Yesterday afternoon, Alcatel told employees that over the next several
weeks it would be reducing its workforce of 150 employees in Spokane,
Wash., by roughly one third. That facility, the former headquarters of
Packet Engines, has focused on the development of Alcatel's PowerRail
Distribution Router, which until yesterday was marketed to carriers by
Alcatel's Broadband Networking Division. Alcatel bought Packet Engines
for $315 million early in 1999.
Development on the Alcatel 7652, 7622, and 7212 PowerRail Distribution
Routers has now ceased, Alcatel says. But the company says another
series of products with the Packet Engines pedigree will continue to
be supported "one hundred percent." Those products include the
OmniCore series of switch/routers, which are marketed to enterprise
customers by Alcatel's E-Business Networking Division, headquartered
in Calabasas, Calif. That division will take over remaining resources
in Spokane.
The uncertainty in the Spokane office contrasts with Alcatel's early
hopes for Packet Engines.
According to Packet Engines founder Bernard Daines, who now heads up
optical Ethernet startup World Wide Packets Inc., Alcatel wanted a leg
up in carrier Ethernet when it bought Packet Engines. And it wanted a
group of employees it could depend on.
-------------------------------------------------
http://www.spokanejournal.com/index.php?id=article&sub=972
November 10, 2000
Alcatel secures its future here
Spokane office employs 170 people now, over half of whom are engineers
After a somewhat tumultuous start here, the Spokane operation of
Paris-based Alcatel S.A. has secured its role within that
multi-billion-dollar company and apparently, for some time to come,
its future in Spokane.
When Alcatel acquired Spokane-based Packet Engines Inc. in December
1998, initial reports indicated that the operation would retain the
Packet name and possibly double its workforce here to 400 people.
Bernard Daines, Packet?s founder, was expected to stay on as CEO of
the Spokane operation.
Within months, however, Daines had left the company, and by the end of
last year, lawsuits, which still are pending, had been filed against
Alcatel by Daines and by a group of former Packet employees.
Meanwhile, Packet?s sales force was relocated to other Alcatel
offices, and its manufacturing operations were moved to California,
leaving only a research-and-development center here that many
speculated might not survive.
Although little has been heard from Alcatel?s Spokane operation since,
it?s secure in its future here, says Greg Eitzen, vice president of
engineering here. About 100 engineers are working at the company?s
Spokane Valley office, at 11707 E. Sprague, on testing and maintaining
current products, developing new ones, and providing highly technical
support. Those are the kind of jobs economic-development boosters here
have been scrambling to attract.
Packet Engines was started by Daines and moved to Spokane from Union
City, Calif., in 1995. The company, at the time it was sold to
Alcatel, had been making a repeater, which controls how information is
transmitted through a computer network, and the PowerRail routing
switch. The repeater product has been discontinued, but the PowerRail
routing switch still is being manufactured by Alcatel at one of the
company?s plants in Calabasas, Calif., Eitzen says.
Eitzen, who joined Packet Engines about nine months before the company
was sold to Alcatel, says Packet Engines went from being a young
startup with a complete business to being integrated into the mature
company of Alcatel. As part of that transition, the jobs of Packet
employees who performed duplicated functions were moved to other
locations within Alcatel, causing some people to relocate. Other
employees simply left because they weren?t comfortable with the
transition from a startup to a mature company, he says. He adds that
about 40 percent of the Spokane operation?s current employees were
employed by Packet Engines before it was sold. |