Hemisphere GPS Cuts Non-Agriculture Business

Hemisphere GPS, Inc., has announced a new corporate strategy that focuses exclusively on the agriculture business. The company, which appointed Rick Heiniger chief executive in September, said it expects to save $7 million annually from the restructuring. The workforce will be reduced from 273 to about 170, and the headquarters will be moved from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to Hiawatha, Kansas, where Hemisphere GPS’s agricultural operations are located.

Hemisphere GPS said diversification into marine, construction, and other industries had increased costs, absorbed cash, and distracted management focus from its core agriculture business. The agriculture business contributed 81 percent of the company’s revenue in the first nine months of 2012. Hemisphere’s agriculture products include the Outback line, OEM boards and antennas, and precision agriculture systems.

The company has hired an investment banking firm to pursue strategic alternatives for the Precision Products (non-agriculture) business. “Given the agricultural focus of the Company, the board believes that the Precision Products business can grow more quickly with another organization that is more strategically aligned,” the company stated.

“The agricultural industry is entering a period of exceptional opportunity. We’re in the early stages of transformational adoption of high-definition production practices,” said Hemisphere GPS’ new CEO, Rick Heiniger. “We are a data driven society, and agriculture is no different. Agronomic specialized data-management and cloud information services, combined with a new generation of connected devices and machines, will not only enable emerging technologies, but will simplify existing workflows and deliver productivity gains for the industry. We will be wholly focused on the essential core technologies while at the same time assisting the industry in its adoption.”