Avocent
Encyclopedia
Avocent, a business of Emerson Network Power
, is an information technology products manufacturer headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama
. Avocent was formed in 2000 from the merger of the world’s two largest KVM
(keyboard, video and mouse) switch manufacturers: Apex and Cybex Computer Products Corporation. As of August 2006, the company employs more than 1,800 people worldwide.
On October 6, 2009, it was announced that Emerson Electric would buy Avocent for $1.2 billion USD.
The tender was finalized on December 11 to become Avocent part of Emerson Network Power
, division of Emerson Electric.
The evolution of Avocent's product development can be divided into three eras: (1) The growth of the analog KVM switch paralleling the growth of server architecture in the data center; (2) The growth of the digital KVM switch enabling the remote control of geographically dispersed data centers; and (3) The diversification and “management” phase (revolving around the acquisition of LANDesk and Touchpaper software and the capabilities it brings).
Emerson Network Power
Emerson Network Power – a division of Emerson Electric Company – is a global technology company that specializes in the development and manufacture of power backup systems, power supplies, embedded computing solutions, precision cooling, racks/enclosures, infrastructure management, and connectivity...
, is an information technology products manufacturer headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville is a city located primarily in Madison County in the central part of the far northern region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Huntsville is the county seat of Madison County. The city extends west into neighboring Limestone County. Huntsville's population was 180,105 as of the 2010 Census....
. Avocent was formed in 2000 from the merger of the world’s two largest KVM
KVM switch
A KVM switch is a hardware device that allows a user to control multiple computers from a single keyboard, video monitor and mouse. Although multiple computers are connected to the KVM, typically a smaller number of computers can be controlled at any given time...
(keyboard, video and mouse) switch manufacturers: Apex and Cybex Computer Products Corporation. As of August 2006, the company employs more than 1,800 people worldwide.
On October 6, 2009, it was announced that Emerson Electric would buy Avocent for $1.2 billion USD.
The tender was finalized on December 11 to become Avocent part of Emerson Network Power
Emerson Network Power
Emerson Network Power – a division of Emerson Electric Company – is a global technology company that specializes in the development and manufacture of power backup systems, power supplies, embedded computing solutions, precision cooling, racks/enclosures, infrastructure management, and connectivity...
, division of Emerson Electric.
Product Ranges
Avocent focuses on out of band infrastructure management solutions within 7 major fields:- Server Management
- Power Management
- Service Processor Management
- Console Server and KVM Management
- IPMI Solutions for OEM partners
- A wide-range of embedded software solutions
- Desktop Management
- ITIL market
- IT Service Management
The evolution of Avocent's product development can be divided into three eras: (1) The growth of the analog KVM switch paralleling the growth of server architecture in the data center; (2) The growth of the digital KVM switch enabling the remote control of geographically dispersed data centers; and (3) The diversification and “management” phase (revolving around the acquisition of LANDesk and Touchpaper software and the capabilities it brings).
Acquisitions
Avocent's history of acquisitions includes:- 2001 - Equinox Systems, the makers of various serial communications devices.
- 2002 - 2C Computing, who focused on PCI-bus extension, suitable to remotely connect office users to datacenter-housed PCs.
- 2003 - Soronti, Inc., makers of KVM over IP technology.
- 2004 - Crystal Link Technologies, OSA Technologies, Inc., and Sonic Mobility, Inc.
- 2006 - Cyclades Corporation and LANDesk SoftwareLANDeskLANDesk Software provides systems management, security management, service management, asset management, and process management solutions to organizations...
. - 2008 - 1 July 2008, acquired Touchpaper Software, to further bolster the companies vision of covering all aspects from the data center to the desktop as well IT services and merge within its LANDesk division. Also acquired Ergo 2000, an LCD rack-based console maker.