Hand Held’s best known product is the Dolphin line of hardened mobile computers, which feature a branded high performance image scanning technology.  Since there has been so much hoopla over wireless in the process automation business this year, and since Honeywell’s OneWireless solution involves handheld computing and data capture, ARC wondered if these events were related.  We spoke with executives from both Honeywell ACS and Hand Held Products this week to learn more.

Process manufacturers are keen to improve the visibility of plant operations outside the control room, and automated data capture using mobile computing platforms are one means to that end.  ARC reported on end user plans earlier this year in our March 2007 report entitled “Best Practices for In-Plant Visibility in Process Manufacturing”.  But while process plants are eager to capture additional and more accurate field information, ARC has never seen Dolphin computers in these applications.  Instead, end users ARC has interviewed have used equipment from several of HHP’s larger competitors.  These companies have gone to the trouble and expense of qualifying some of their models for use in hazardous environments, which allowed them to be used for these applications.  We wondered if Dolphin products would do the same, and would Honeywell OneWireless solutions be using them in the future?

The short answer from Honeywell was no.  While they are open and eager to explore opportunities to work together, Honeywell is not planning any product changes that will impact HHP’s current business operations.  HHP serves very different markets than Honeywell Process Solutions.  HHP’s strongest verticals are retail, delivery, warehousing, and distribution.  What attracted Honeywell ACS to Hand Held Products (besides sustained double digit growth in the AutoID market) was a cultural match.  The firms share a common focus on long-term relationships with their end user customers. 

From the view of Honeywell Process Solutions, priority is on the applications.  CTO Dan Sheflin explained that process manufacturers need to assure consistent use of best practices and high repeatability in their process operations.  This provides huge bottom-line benefits and avoids the big risks that can result from abnormal situations.  While automated data capture from the field is an important part of this, the particular computing platform is not.

So in the short term, Honeywell’s response indicates that their OneWireless program was not a factor in this acquisition.  In the longer term, there are possible benefits.  Honeywell praised the Adaptus imaging technology of HHP, and noted that imaging was HHP’s technological market differentiator.  Honeywell believes that such imaging will be a benefit for process field operations eventually. 

In the longer term, the HHP acquisition adds new technologies to the portfolio of Honeywell ACS.  What is unique about Honeywell’s present organization is that their ACS business unit encompasses not only process automation but building automation, security and fire, sensing and now automated data capture.  Furthermore, Honeywell coordinates its technology strategies across all of these ACS businesses.  Not to say that all technology development is done in common, or that the coordination is optimized.  It is not, as Honeywell admits.  But that collaboration on technology takes place within a single business unit at Honeywell, in contrast to its major competitors.  The acquisition of Hand Held Products will bring new perspectives to this organization.  At the very least, there will be seats at the table for HHP developers immersed in imaging technology and in rugged mobile computing.  And HHP may have more company as Honeywell continues to pursue acquisition opportunities in 2007.