NEWS

The Right Connections – Technocom Hooks Its Clients Up To Networks

By Curt Kipp – Wilsonville Spokesman 07.12.06

Rick McCloskey thinks of his company as the Les Schwab of wiring and networking homes and businesses. His service–oriented philosophy could be described as "doing it right and doing it complete." "The only thing we haven’t figured out is how to run into people’s buildings," he said. But his company’s story doesn’t resemble Schwab’s so much as it does that of a familiar TV show that shall not be named. It’s the story...Of four high school tech firms... Specifically: ESP Technologies, Connected Technologies, Managed Communications and LiveWire Technologies. McCloskey has money to invest after selling his stake in NorAm Telecommunications in the late 1990s and he invested in all four companies. The companies were in the business of installing networks, although each had its own area of specialization. "As we looked at them, they were very close to doing the same thing," he said, "we tried to get these companies to talk to each other." ...And they knew that it was much more then a hunch...That this group must somehow form a company... "They actually got together and said, ‘Yes, it does make a lot of sense,’" McCloskey said. They decided to pool their resources and be able to served every kind of networking need, but first they needed a new name. "It was hard to sell to the customer, ‘We’re your one–stop shop’ under four different names," McCloskey said. And that’s the way they all became, well...Technocom. "It was a good move," McCloskey said. "It’s worked out for everyone. It ended a lot of confusion." The transition was completed in June. McCloskey became the chief executive officer of the new company and Kevin Doherty was named the president and chief marketing officer. McCloskey and Doherty are the two main owners in a six–investor group that owns Technocom. The new unified firm offers "one–stop shopping" for networks needs of every kind, from office telephones to data networks; from home theater to home security: and from surveillance to lighting and shading controls. "All those things we didn’t dream about years ago are things that people want," Commercial Marketing Manager Steve Wallo said. Many of Technocom’s competitors specialize in one of these areas, but it makes sense to have a company that can handle all of them, Wallo and McCloskey said. One reason is that the line between home and office is becoming increasingly blurred; telecommuters, for instance, now have office–like technical needs for their homes. "We think there’s a need for a service company like ours," he said. The company is headquartered in Wilsonville and its commercial division operates out of that facility, which formerly housed ESP Technologies. McCloskey’s office is located there. Doherty is based in the company’s Tigard office, which formerly housed LiveWire. Technocom’s residential operations are based there. The company also has an office in Auburn, Washington, which serves mostly commercial customers in the Seattle area. It formerly housed Connected Technologies. The companies that now make up Technocom logged $15 million in revenue in 2005, McCloskey said. The firm employs 104 workers company–wide, including about 70 in Wilsonville. The Wilsonville facility occupies 10,000 square feet in the Canyon Creek Business Park, including 4,000 square feet of office space and a 6,000 foot warehouse.

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