Power firms Argus, Alpha merge

VANCOUVER, BC—In a move that brings AC- and DC-based power solutions under one roof, Argus Technologies and Alpha Technologies, two power-supply makers, have announced a merger. The new company, Alpha Technologies, will now offer both product lines under one brand, and the two companies will consolidate operations in a new facility starting Jan. 1.

Alpha and Argus were sister companies both owned by the same private investors, but “when you're trying to sell someone else's product there's always some hesitation there,” said David Boroevich, VP of marketing at Alpha. “We've now eliminated those biases and we can make sure we're truly supplying the customer with a solution that considers everything at our beck and call.”

Historically, Alpha has been more focused toward the security industry, while Argus has mostly sold into the telecom market. Also, Argus was primarily DC-based in its power solutions. Adding Argus' line should create better solutions for security, however, said Boroevich. “Most DVRs are going to be AC products,” he said, “but a lot of the security cameras and smaller end devices, they're going to be DC-oriented, so it makes sense to have the [uninterruptible power supply] be DC. Then you don't lose any efficiency by going through a power conversion.”

The newly combined company will have roughly 300 employees with about five percent of its revenues currently coming from security, but Boroevich said security will be a primary focus in 2010. “Our funnel into the security market is very strong,” he said, “but the results are still embryonic. We're expecting a lot of growth in this sector for us.”