Unisys

Unisys
source
Name	Unisys
Type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: UIS
Industry	Information technology
Founded	September 1986
Hq location city	Blue Bell, Pennsylvania
Hq location country	United States
Key people	Peter A. Altabef (Chairman & CEO)
Products	IT services, Software, Technology
Website	www.unisys.com

Unisys. The company is a global information technology firm specializing in digital workplace, cloud and infrastructure, and business process solutions. Formed through the merger of two historic computer manufacturers, it has evolved from a hardware-centric business into a services-led organization. Its clients include many Fortune 500 companies and government agencies worldwide, such as the United States Department of Defense.

History

The corporation was established in September 1986 through the merger of Sperry Corporation and Burroughs Corporation, a landmark event in the information technology industry often called the largest merger at that time. Sperry was the maker of the UNIVAC line of mainframe computers, famous for its role in the United States Census and the CBS election night prediction in 1952. Burroughs, founded by William Seward Burroughs I, was a major manufacturer of accounting machines and later a key player in the mainframe market. Throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, the company was one of the "BUNCH" competing directly with IBM. Facing intense competition from IBM and the rise of personal computers, it began a strategic shift in the early 2000s under leadership like that of Lawrence A. Weinbach to move away from commodity hardware. This transition involved significant restructuring, including the 2009 sale of its UNIX server business to Fujitsu and a greater focus on IT services and software.

Products and services

Its portfolio is centered on three primary solution areas: digital workplace, cloud and infrastructure, and business process solutions. The digital workplace services aim to enhance employee productivity through services like Unified Endpoint Management and secure mobile device support. Cloud and infrastructure offerings include application modernization, migration to platforms like Microsoft Azure, and managed services for data center operations. Its business process solutions feature industry-specific offerings for sectors such as financial services, including payment processing and fraud detection, and for the public sector, including solutions for Homeland Security and social services administration. The company also provides specialized software such as the MCP-based ClearPath mainframe environment and the Forward! by Unisys service management platform.

Corporate affairs

The company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol UIS. Its global headquarters are located in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, within the Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of recent leadership, Peter A. Altabef serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Major operational centers and clients are spread worldwide, with significant presence in regions including North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It maintains long-standing contracts with various U.S. federal agencies, including the Transportation Security Administration and the United States Postal Service. The firm's financial performance has been marked by the ongoing transition from legacy hardware support to higher-margin services, a journey shared by contemporaries like DXC Technology.

Technology and innovations

Historically, the company was renowned for its proprietary mainframe architectures, notably the Burroughs large systems and the UNIVAC series, which utilized unique instruction set architectures. A key innovation was the development of the MCP (Master Control Program) operating system, which pioneered concepts like ALGOL-based system programming and tagged architecture for enhanced security. In the security domain, it developed the Stealth suite of products, which uses identity-based microsegmentation and encryption to create secure "cloaked" networks for data. More recently, its innovations focus on digital transformation, applying artificial intelligence and automation through its Unisys InteliServe platform and investing in blockchain applications for secure logistics and supply chains.

See also

* IBM * DXC Technology * Atos * Fujitsu * NCR Corporation * Mainframe computer * IT services * Digital transformation

Category:Information technology companies of the United States Category:Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Category:Computer hardware companies Category:Companies based in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania