AT&T/NCR merger won't impact PACS

AT&T's merger with computer firm NCR will have no immediateimplications for AT&T's picture archiving and communicationssystems business, said Stephen G. Chappell, director of AT&TMedical Systems. Agreement on the merger was reached this month.

NCR focuses largely on the supply of computers into retailingand banking applications. While the two companies could conceivablycooperate in the future use of computer technology for medicalimaging applications, AT&T plans to let the NCR business continueoperating autonomously, Chappell said.

"AT&T's approach to this merger is that they (NCR)are doing well without us, and we shouldn't smother that,"he said.

The CommView PACS business will remain in AT&T, he said.

"We may talk to them (NCR) to see if they have anythingthat is relevant (to PACS)," Chappell said. "But wewill not overwhelm them, and they will not take CommView. It isgoing to be a slow merger."

AT&T and Philips Medical Systems, its PACS partner in theCommView project, announced plans in January to reorganize theirjoint medical effort with the aim of reducing costs and avoidingredundant expenditures (SCAN 1/30/91).

AT&T trimmed its medical staff at that point, but remainsinvolved and interested in the PACS business, Chappell said.

BRIEFLY NOTED:

• Gammex formed a German distribution company in Bad Munstereifelthis month. Gammex-RMI GmbH will handle sales of products fromall three medical imaging companies within the Gammex group. Theseinclude Gammex Lasers' patient alignment systems, teleradiologyequipment from DataSpan/Gammex and phantom technology from RadiationMeasurements.

Gammex expects that Germany will increase its position as theeconomic hub of the European Community, said Charles Lescrenier,president and CEO of the Milwaukee firm.