Nanoteq to focus on e-business solutions

By Basheera Khan, UK correspondent, ITWeb

Johannesburg, 28 Jun 2000

Nanoteq, part of the Comparex Holdings group of companies, has discarded much of its traditional focus on proprietary security solution development to become a value-added reseller in the secure e-business solution market.

The main reason for this shift in focus, according to Jacques van der Merwe, Nanoteq sales and marketing manager, is the overall shift in strategy on Comparex Holdings` side. "Certainly the change in [Comparex] strategy, insofar as the group is moving out of networking and the desktop business, and concentrating on the e-commerce business, is the big driver behind it.

"The market has changed. There are so many branded products now that in most cases, companies can find a solution. This was not the case three or four years ago. So we need to do less product development to plug the hole, so to speak. Moving into e-commerce, our focus will be on supplying solutions for business-to-business environments. It`s a change from our previous strategy where we developed products in niche areas - we won`t be doing that anymore. But our target markets remain the same - we`ll work with the banks and in the telco environment."

Nanoteq will also continue to service the military market; provide various fax, voice and data line solutions; and offer the traditional security solutions such as firewalling and VPN technology.

In its new role as solutions provider or systems integrator, Nanoteq will deliver professional services and integrated security solutions based on leading technologies, says Van der Merwe.

"The idea would be to try and utilise more partners in the process. We`ve signed up a lot of branded security products, such as RSA, ISS, Axent, and various third-party products. We also still have some Nanoteq proprietary products, but the idea is not to focus on the products side anymore, but to try and provide a solution based on whatever the client needs."

The restructuring has involved the sale of two technology-focused business units (negotiations to sell two other technology businesses are underway) and the cutting back of a handful of staff members.

"It is still a Nanoteq strategy to maintain a large pool of developers, but the fact is we need less of those guys today than we needed six months back."

Nanoteq intends to apply its remaining contingent of developers and engineers to complex projects to develop long-term solutions for a number of clients, while its flagship products, securing messaging middleware (MQArmour) and network infrastructure (NetSec), will remain part of the company`s core competency.

The implication for Nanoteq`s channel partners, Van der Merwe says, is minimal. "Nanoteq in itself has less products. But the products we`re continuing with are more focused, there`s more people on the team and more R&D spending, so the effect downstream in the channel will not be that great."

However, Van der Merwe notes that the sale of Comparex`s networking companies to Dimension Data last year has had a more profound impact on the company`s European operations.

"A lot of these companies were our channel partners, so at the moment we`re still continuing with some of those relationships, but that will probably come to an end at some stage. We`re in the process of looking for new partners, so it`s a difficult period for us as well."

Despite these hiccups, Van der Merwe says the company`s main emphasis will be on consulting services or professional services. "In the current market, every company has extensive networks and IT infrastructures. They`re starting to use it more for e-business, the information is more sensitive, and they want to know how to protect that. Because there`s not enough general knowledge in the market, there`s a huge need for professional services, which we aim to deliver.

"A big part of our strategy is now middleware security in the sensitive field of EFT [electronic funds transfer] technology. We`re hoping to see results in this arena in the next 12 to 18 months."