The Business Journal got a sneak peek at Iogear’s new 70,000-square-foot digs at Irvine Spectrum, which are outfitted with a product showroom and training space created to drum up more business for its network of resellers and distributors.
The 15365 Barranca Parkway headquarters is 30,000 square feet larger than the computer product manufacturer’s previous home in Foothill Ranch and includes a warehouse to ship products throughout the U.S., Canada and parts of South America.
Its showroom features dozens of offerings partitioned by category, including its flagship KVM (keyboard, video, mouse) switches, computer accessories, networking and mobility devices, and gaming products under its Kaliber brand.
“The key behind all this work is about emphasizing the company’s focus. Seeing is believing,” said Chief Executive Jack Wang. “We wanted to utilize a certain space in the company to bring resellers of our products a location or space for them.”
Iogear, a unit of Taiwan-based ATEN International Co., generates about $30 million in annual sales.
Its parent, which is publicly traded on the Taiwan Stock Exchange and is the market leader in KVM switches, posts annual revenue of between $300 million and $360 million.
Security Huddle
Local finance chiefs, other C-level executives and board members gained valuable tips on preventing and mitigating security threats—and keeping them out of the news—at a recent breakfast event hosted by the Forum of Corporate Directors at Westin South Coast Plaza.
The panel discussion was led by former senior CIA officer and NSA adviser Bryan Cunningham, who recently was hired as executive director of University of California-Irvine’s developing Cybersecurity Policy and Research Institute. Other panelists included Michael Ray, who leads the legal team of Irvine-based Western Digital Corp.; Danielle Gray, who served in the Obama administration for five years in senior legal and policy positions; and Jason Smolanoff, chief executive of Los Angeles-based CISO Advisory & Investigations and former FBI supervisory special agent in the L.A. field office, where he oversaw day-to-day operations of a Cyber National Security squad.
The Business Journal would have had more to report on the private, invite-only event but agreed not to quote the speakers in order to attend the session, which typically would have been entirely closed to the press.
Ex-Broadcom Exec to Ubiquity Board
Former Broadcom Corp. executive Martin Colombatto has joined the advisory board of Ubiquity Inc. as the Irvine-based media and technology company implements a restructuring plan.
Colombatto, who has more than 30 years of experience in engineering, product development, and sales and marketing, was vice president and general manager of Broadcom’s networking division from 1996 to 2002, creating a business that generated more than $400 million over four years and leading the acquisition of five companies.
Ubiquity, which developed operating system software for smartphones, among other offerings, recently announced plans to spin out its production studio amid a management shakeup.
The company had a recent market value of about $62 million, which has plummeted from $560 million about two years ago.
Colombatto is a board member at Irvine-based networking chipmaker ClariPhy Inc., which is led by former Broadcom executive Nariman Yousefi, who helped establish Broadcom’s networking group. That division now generates billions annually for Broadcom Ltd., which was established in February after Broadcom’s $37 billion sale to Singapore-based Avago Technologies Inc.
