Restructuring at Alpha Micro Will Cost 25 Jobs

Alpha Microsystems, seeking to cut costs as the computer market slows, has announced a restructuring that will result in 25 to 30 layoffs at the minicomputer company.

The 7% staff cutback results from the consolidation of administrative and support functions following the company’s purchase of Rexon Business Machines and AMS Computers, Alpha President John S. Cain said Tuesday. The company has about 400 employees.

Cain said the acquisitions had “afforded us the opportunity” to make “across the board” cuts in areas such as accounting, order entry and purchasing. Rexon and AMS remain separate subsidiaries, but the support functions are now performed centrally.

Alpha said the cuts are designed to “bring the number of employees more in line with revenue levels.” The company had earnings of $752,000 on sales of $40.8 million for the nine months ended Nov. 26, compared to earnings of $2.1 million on sales of $38 million for the same period a year earlier.

Cain said the company had recently slipped below its target of $150,000 in sales per employee. “The computer industry as a whole has not experienced robust growth,” Cain said. He added that Alpha’s revenues have been reduced because of exchange rate fluctuations, but maintained that the firm’s operations are in good shape.

He declined to predict when the firm’s lackluster performance might improve, citing the many predictions that the nation may soon enter a recession.