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Finalist: Telesis Technology
By David Wexler
Associate Editor
Everything Hasit Vibhakar knows about aerospace and defense he learned from his days at Melbourne-based Harris Corp., which makes gadgets from military radios to antennas.
But in 2002, after heading up the sales division for the firm's 14-state southeast section for more than 10 years, Vibhakar took his Rolodex of business contacts and left for Palmetto. He started his own company, Telesis Technology.
Like Harris Corp., the firm makes and sells products for aerospace companies and military branches, equipment used in tasks such as radar, weapons systems and consumer electronics. Clients include the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Air Force.
The move has paid off for Vibhakar. The company, with six employees in Florida and another 11 working in a Nebraska facility, is growing at a triple-digit rate and has been profitable for 12 consecutive quarters. In 2004, Telesis generated $1.6 million in sales, up from $750,000 in sales in 2003, and has recorded nearly $600,000 in gross profit. It expects to top $3 million in 2005.
Vibhakar, who funded the entire company himself, took the operation public in August 2004.
"It's hard to explain this whole phenomenon," says Vibhakar, who was born and raised in Tanzania, Africa before moving to America at age 14. "A lot of companies are not making money and are out there spinning wheels. Coming from Harris Corp., I had a tremendous following of customers. I have some high-level contacts at some of the larger defense contractors in the government. We capitalize on those."
Simplifying the complicated
Telesis has five divisions: Government Products, Commercial Products, Telesis RF, Telesis Aerospace and Telesis Test Labs.
On the product side, the company manufacturers transistors and diodes. The latter are electronic components that are used in a variety of ways, from complicated military avionics systems to basic consumer electronics, like cell phones. There are about 20 diodes in a cell phone to handle power management, Vibhakar says.
"Cell phones are becoming smaller and more ergonomic," Vibhakar says. "They have more features due to better power management. The same applies to military and aerospace applications."
On the military side, the government installs Telesis' military-level diodes into circuit boards, which eventually end up in airplanes and navigation and radar equipment. One client, Hill Air Force Base in northern Utah, embeds the diodes in its radar and navigation system used for test flights.
Vibhakar saw a need for the product because many of the major items used in military and aerospace applications are becoming obsolete. Telesis' technology is now replacing the older generation of products manufactured by major semiconductor companies like Motorola and Microsemi.
"The government is having a tough time doing repairs and maintaining equipment without adequate access to existing parts," Vibhakar says. "That's really our niche and where we capture our market share."
The company's service division, Telesis Test Labs, provides third-party testing services for independent distributors of electronic components. Telesis provides the testing service on a monthly subscription basis or on an order-by-order basis. These services cost in the range of $1,500 to $2,500.
The biggest challenge for Vibhakar has been finding qualified technical expertise in Florida, he says. The company has shifted a majority of its operations to Superior, Neb., where it has set up a distribution center in a new 20,000-square-foot building. The company also plans to build a 30,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Superior in early 2006.
Tech Time
Hasit Vibhakar might run a company selling snazzy high-tech gizmos to the military, but that doesn't mean he is a total techno geek. He is picky about his tech toys.
He loves his Blackberry. He says it makes "my life a lot easier when I'm on the road. When I was visiting a customer in Wichita, I had a proposal to send out the next day. I was able to do that directly through a wireless e-mail. That was amazing to do all that."
He hates MP3s. "I don't know what they are and how they work. I go after technology that makes sense to me. The other stuff is really irrelevant at this point."
His best tip for newbies in the technology business is to be aggressive.
"You've got to learn real fast how to close a deal," he says, "because remember, revenues is what it's all about."
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