ROLM

ROLM Corporation was a technology company founded in Silicon Valley in 1969. In 1978, ROLM split into Rolm Mil-Spec Computers and Rolm Telecom. During 1983-1984, IBM partnered with the company, and Rolm Mil-Spec was sold to Loral Corporation and later to Lockheed Martin in 1996 as Tactical Defense Systems. IBM's ROLM division was later half sold to Siemens AG in 1989, whereupon the manufacturing and development became wholly owned by Siemens and called ROLM Systems, while marketing and service became a joint venture of IBM with Siemens, called ROLM Company. After nearly 30 years, phone products with the name "Rolm" were discontinued in the late 1990s, as sales dropped in markets dominated by new technology with other products or other companies.

Products

The ROLM corporation had two distinct operations, depending on the application of the associated hardware, with a cross blending of technologies from one division to the other.

Military Hardware

The company first produced rugged mil-spec (military specification) computer systems running Data General software. The company divisionalized in 1978, becoming both Rolm Mil-Spec Computers and Rolm Telecom. The Telecom division spent much of the considerable profit realized by the Mil-Spec Computer division over the ensuing 1980s trying to penetrate the convoluted phone-interconnect business.