Reactive Group acquires legacy data storage specialist Arraid

Reactive Group, an independent company specialising in the design, manufacture, sales and support of data storage and networking products, has acquired Arizona-based company Arraid. Arraid is a manufacturer of replacement data storage solutions for ageing disk, tape and floppy drives on legacy computer systems.

Arraid’s products are used extensively in commercial and government markets in applications including ATE, broadcast and video, health care, defence, power and utility, printing and publishing, process control, semiconductor manufacturing, simulation and training, and telephony. Typically, its customers have incurred large investments in non-portable software running on legacy computer systems which the original manufacturers are no longer able or willing to support.

Integrating proprietary FPGA-based technology and industrial-grade CompactFlash (CF) cards as the media, Arraid manufactures new drive replacements for SMD, HISI, HPIB, MAC, OMTI, Pertec and XMD protocols, and several other legacy drive replacements including SCSI-1 and SCSI-2 and floppy disk drives. Legacy computer systems simply see Arraid’s drives as if they are the original drives, enabling them to be field-replaced without the need for any software changes.

“Arraid’s replacement drives extend the life of critical legacy computer systems, protecting valuable system software and reducing downtime,” said James Hilken, director of the Reactive Group. “Additionally, they eliminate maintenance headaches and media problems as well as reduce operational costs.”

The acquisition has been described as a natural extension of Reactive Group’s specialist engineering heritage in prolonging the life of legacy computer systems. Reactive Group is also taking the opportunity to further improve the performance of the Arraid product line by revamping the complete range of Arraid replacement drives with solid-state disk technology from its existing Solid State Disks subsidiary, which also manufactures solid-state replacements for ageing disk, tape and floppy drives.

“The acquisition of Arraid significantly expands our existing ‘Through Life Support’ capabilities with regard to ageing, obsolete and end-of-life disk, tape and floppy drives on legacy computer systems,” said Hilken. “Through Life Support is a phrase increasingly used for equipment that is in the later stages of life but still needs to be maintained and kept fully operational.”