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Strategies & Market Trends : The Thread Formerly Known as No Rest For The Wicked -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Tim Luke who wrote (75031)	11/24/1999 8:42:00 PM
From: TheHahnz	Respond to of 90042

well... this could certainly add some excitement to what could otherwise be a dull post thanksgiving trading day...

To: Tim Luke who wrote (75031)	11/24/1999 9:34:00 PM
From: Captain Jack	Respond to of 90042

KANATA, Ont., Nov 24, 1999 (The Canadian Press via COMTEX) -- Newbridge Networks Corp.'s new president, Pearse Flynn, is moving quickly to implement the corporate restructuring he unveiled last week. On Wednesday, the high-tech firm laid off about 300 Kanata-area employees, representing about 40 per cent of a global cutback involving 750 workers. The news was better than expected for the local region because the company originally predicted the Kanata workforce would be hit by about 500 of the layoffs. Flynn said the estimate changed as the firm started examining its staff needs in more detail. 'We wanted to move our resources in line with our priorities,' he said. These days, two major research and development projects are taking precedence over everything else and these are managed in Kanata. Newbridge is racing to complete two new versions of the data switch known as the 36170, which uses asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) technology. The firm is also developing high-speed wireless communications technology. Early versions of both products are already being evaluated by customers but Newbridge has a longer-term goal of trying to leapfrog its rival, Lucent Technologies Inc. of Murray Hill, N.J. 'The U.S. market is demanding the bigger products faster,' Flynn said in reference to the next-generation ATM switches, which next year will be able to process data at a rate of 450 billion bits per second. 'The 450 is going to give us 18 months' lead over Lucent,' he said. With R&D spending continuing at a high level, Flynn had to cut more deeply into the firm's administrative and sales groups to find the cost savings he needs to keep Newbridge competitive. Newbridge cut 200 of its European employees earlier this week. Another few dozen workers in the Asia-Pacific region will be affected and 200 U.S.-based employees will get their job notices by Monday. Newbridge's total workforce will be about 6,000 after all the cuts take effect. Flynn promised: 'That's the end of the layoffs here.' In the Kanata area, some employees received one month worth of severance pay for each year of service -- with a minimum lump-sum payment of four months' salary no matter how short the worker's tenure. This is easily double the minimum requirement mandated by the provincial government. Flynn said other high-tech firms are knocking on the door. 'We've had a number of companies in the local region already wanting to hire these people,' he said. Newbridge is expected within days to announce it will outsource about 200 customer support services jobs, possibly to IBM Corp. of New York. The company is also planning to outsource the bulk of its manufacturing operation, which employs between 500 and 600. 'I want to stress that we're going to move at a speed that we haven't been moving at before,' he said. 'That's why I've been brought in here.' Flynn hopes to have the manufacturing jobs outsourced in less than five months. He declined to discuss the extent of outside interest in acquiring Newbridge. 'I've got no comments to make about individual companies or acquisitions,' he said. On the Toronto stock market Wednesday, Newbridge shares fell 30 cents to $32.90.