Spokane tech firms team up-Itron, Itronix join forces in computer deal

Two Spokane technology companies often confused with one another are back together again in a business partnership.

Itron Inc. recently signed an agreement to become the exclusive distributor for wireless handheld computers made by Itronix Corp.

Tom Sowa
Staff writer

Itron, based in the Spokane Valley, designs and manufactures smart metering devices and software products for the energy, water and gas utility industry.

Itronix, with headquarters on the South Hill, designs and makes rugged handheld computers and ultrarugged laptops.

The agreement, signed in September, allows Itron exclusive distribution of Itronix wireless handhelds to the utility-meter reading industry.

The other major producer of handheld units for utility workers is Servatron, also based in Spokane.

Itronix-manufactured handheld computers have been sold not just to utilities, but to transportation companies, telecommunications firms and field service providers like Honeywell.

Itron was the original parent of Itronix, hence the companies’ similar names.

In the early 1990s, Itron stopped manufacturing handheld units and spun off Itronix. Itron sold the Itronix unit first to Telxon shortly thereafter.

Itronix is now a subsidiary of Acterna Corp. of Germantown, Md., and is traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

Along with the exclusive distribution of handhelds, the deal makes Itron a nonexclusive distributor of Itronix’s other main line — high-end wireless laptops like the GoBook MAX.

Ultrarugged laptops account for about 80 percent of revenue for Itronix, while handhelds provide 20 percent, said Matt Gerber, the company’s vice president of marketing.

Handhelds are small units that can be easily held in one hand, in contrast to laptops that typically are built into a truck or car for mobility.

Utility meter readers use them for quick gathering of data for billing and other services.

"Itron is the dominant player in the utility meter-reading industry, so it makes sense to have an exclusive agreement with them," Gerber said.

The nonexclusive part of the deal opens the door for customers of Itron to buy Itronix’s wireless laptops, said Rob Neilson, Itron’s president and chief operating officer.

Itron has focused its efforts on developing a suite of software services to assist utilities in managing their service crews and mobile workers.

More and more of those workers will benefit from the type of laptops being designed and sold by Itronix, said Neilson.

Revenue for products sold to companies with a mobile work force are expected to grow 15 to 25 percent over the next three years, said Mima Scarpelli, vice president of investor relations for Itron.

Business writer Tom Sowa can be reached at (509) 459-5492 or at [email protected]

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