IOtech, Measurement Computing to combine

IOtech and Measurement Computing, subsidiaries of National Instruments, will integrate their product lines during 2010. By the end of the year, IOtech’s general-purpose data-acquisition products will be manufactured and supported at the Measurement Computing facility in Norton, MA. The product lines include the USB PersonalDaq, Ethernet-based data recorders, PCI cards, and stand-alone dataloggers. IOtech’s vibration-analyzer product line will move to National Instruments headquarters in Austin, TX.The move will put some people out of work. An IOtech spokesman wrote in an e-mail:

We are consolidating the combined company in Norton MA (MCC location). This means that the Ohio facility will be closing. While a few people will be relocating, the majority will, unfortunately, be laid off. To be as fair as possible to the employees, we gave everyone at least 5 months of notice (we announced this to the employees in August) and we are paying up to 20 weeks of severance and Cobra premiums.

It is a very sad and painful thing to do - IOtech has some wonderful employees.

Having visited IOtech several times, I’ve known some of those employees. They’re good people and I wish them well. I commend IOtech and its parent company on providing such considerable notice and generous severance pay. Layoffs are never easy.

The move may result in hiring at the Norton, MA facility. I hope that will be the case.