Tuesday, Jul. 08, 2008

Magazine recognizes Elecsys

Elecsys, an electrical manufacturing and design company based in Olathe, was ranked on Fortune Small Business magazine’s list of America’s fastest-growing small public companies for the second year in a row.

It was No. 84 out of 100 businesses, but Elecsys CEO Karl Gemperli admits “not a lot of people know about us around here.”

Elecsys operates three subsidiaries: DCI, Radix and NTG. The subsidiaries make mobile computing systems, remote-monitoring solutions and other electronic design and manufacturing solutions.

All are housed in a DCI-marked building on Martway Court. Elecsys has had a 24.3 percent revenue growth, calculated at a three-year annualized rate.

“We’ve been fortunate as the U.S. economy is languishing on,” Gemperli said. “As the U.S. economy has been slow, we’re not subject to consumer demand.”

The company is subject, however, to energy and electronic industry demand.

The largest subsidiary is DCI, which Elecsys purchased in 2000. At the time of the purchase, the company was worth $6.5 million and had 125 employees. This year, the company broke $20 million with 125 employees, Gemperli said.

“There’s more automation, more efficiency,” Gemperli said.

DCI makes medical, military and transportation equipment. It has designed and created computer equipment for motorcycles and is one of the only companies in the United States that manufactures liquid crystal displays.

The LCDs the company makes are a complex version of what is found in a watch or a calculator. The multi-colored screens have a wider viewing angles and more multi-colored options. Costing somewhere around $1,000, the LCDs are used by the military and in helicopters and jets.

Elecsys purchased NTG in the summer of 2005. NTG creates remote monitors for the gas and oil pipeline industry.

“NTG was a startup five years ago, and now it is a market force,” Gemperli said.

Radix, which was purchased in September, announced this week that it was working on a $2.6 million hand-held computer order for a South Africa-based computer foundation. The computers include GPS and RFID technology. Creating hand-held and other small items helps the company grow as well, Gemperli said.

“Where shipping is concerned, we can send a high value item for a little weight,” Gemperli said. “We really focus on value and quality. It isn’t like we’re trying to grow for the sake of it. You just aim to run the company well, and then good things will happen.”

Elecsys was ranked using information from the research firm Zacks. To be a part of the list, a company had to report revenue of less than $200 million and a stock price of more than $1 based on percentage growth in earnings, revenue and total return to investors in the last three years. The ranking is found in the July-August issue of the magazine. Also included on the list: Nathan’s Famous, Astronics and The Knot.

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