Trantor Systems
| Company type | Public (formerly) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Computer storage solutions |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Founder | Larry Boucher, Wayne Higashi, Bernard Nieman |
| Defunct | 2010 (as independent company) |
| Fate | Acquired by PMC-Sierra in 2010; brand continued under new ownership |
| Successor | Adaptec by PMC (brand) |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Host bus adapters, RAID controllers, SAS expander cards, cables, software (Easy CD Creator, Toast), network-attached storage (Snap Server) |
| Parent | Originally independent; later PMC-Sierra, Microsemi, Microchip Technology |
Adaptec, Inc. was a company specializing in computer storage solutions and continues as a brand name for storage-related products. Operating independently from its founding in 1981 until 2010, it was acquired by PMC-Sierra, which itself was later purchased by Microsemi, and subsequently by Microchip Technology.
History
Established in 1981 by Larry Boucher, Wayne Higashi, and Bernard Nieman, Adaptec initially concentrated on hardware featuring Parallel SCSI interfaces. Notable offerings included the 154x/15xx ISA and 2940 PCI host bus adapters. Their cross-platform ASPI API facilitated support for non-disk peripherals such as tape drives and scanners. Over the years, Adaptec incorporated RAID functionality and shifted towards newer standards like PCIe and SAS.
During the 1990s, the company grew through strategic acquisitions: purchasing Trantor Systems Ltd. in 1993 for $10 million, acquiring Future Domain Corporation in 1995 for $25 million, and obtaining Distributed Processing Technology in 1999 for $236 million. These moves enhanced Adaptec’s leadership in the SCSI peripheral sector.
On May 10, 2010, PMC-Sierra revealed plans to buy Adaptec's channel storage division—including its RAID product lineup, brand identity, reseller network, board logistics operations, and SSD cache technology—for roughly $34 million. This transaction was finalized on June 8, 2010. After the sale, Adaptec retained ownership of its Aristos ASIC technology business, real estate holdings, a portfolio of over 200 patents, and approximately $400 million in cash and securities.
PMC-Sierra rebranded the purchased assets as "Adaptec by PMC." Later on, in January 2016, PMC-Sierra itself was acquired by Microsemi.
Following these divestitures, the original Adaptec corporation changed its name to ADPT Corporation and subsequently to Steel Excel. It evolved into an investment entity that merged with Handy & Harman Ltd., resulting in the formation of the diversified conglomerate Steel Partners.
Products
Adaptec produced interface solutions supporting technologies such as SCSI, USB, IEEE 1394 (FireWire), iSCSI, Fibre Channel, and video connectivity. The firm also marketed CD- and DVD-burning software under brands like Easy CD Creator and Toast, along with network-attached storage products including the Snap Server series.
Today, the Adaptec brand offers host bus adapters, RAID controllers, SAS expander cards, cables, and related accessories.