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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
[X] Annual report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1997 or
[ ] Transition report pursuant to Section 13 of 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 for the transition period from ________________ to
_______________.
Commission file number: 0-27122
ADEPT TECHNOLOGY, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
California 94-29000635
(State or other jurisdiction of (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)
incorporation or organization)
150 Rose Orchard Way, San Jose, California 95134
(Address of principal executive office) (zip code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (408) 432-0888
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
________________________________________ ___________________________________
Title of each class Name of each exchange
on which registered
None None
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
Common Stock, no par value
(Title of Class)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports
required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the
registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such
filing requirements for the past 90 days.
Yes X No
----- -----
Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to
Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained,
to the best of the registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information
statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any
amendment to this Form 10-K. [X]
The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by non-affiliates
of the registrant, based upon the closing sale price of the Common Stock on
September 5, 1997 as reported on the Nasdaq National Market, was approximately
$88,500,720. Shares of Common Stock held by each officer and director and by
each person who owns 5% or more of the outstanding Common Stock have been
excluded in that such persons may be deemed to be affiliates. This determination
of affiliate status is not necessarily a conclusive determination for other
purposes.
As of September 5, 1997, registrant had outstanding 8,271,955 shares of
Common Stock.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
The Registrant has incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form
10-K portions of its Proxy Statement for the Annual Meeting of Shareholders to
be held November 7, 1997. Portions of the Registrant's Annual Report to
Shareholders for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1997 are incorporated by
reference into Parts II and IV of this Form 10-K.
PART I
Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this Report constitute "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995 (the "Reform Act"). Such forward-looking statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual
results, performance or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be
materially different from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include,
among other things, the following: the potential fluctuations in the Company's
quarterly and annual results of operations; the cyclicality of capital spending
of the Company's customers; the Company's dependence on the continued growth of
the intelligent automation market; the risks associated with sole or single
sources of supply and lengthy procurement lead times; the Company's highly
competitive industry; rapid technological change within the Company's industry;
the lengthy sales cycles for the Company's products; the risks associated with
reliance on system integrators; the risks associated with international sales
and purchases; the risks associated with potential acquisitions and the need to
manage growth; the risks associated with new product development and the need to
manage product transitions, including any difficulties or delays in the
development, production, testing and marketing of the Company's new products
under development; the Company's dependence on retention and attraction of key
employees; the risks associated with product defects; the Company's dependence
on third-party relationships; the uncertainty of patent and proprietary
technology protection and third party intellectual property claims; changes in,
or failure or inability to comply with, government regulations; general economic
and business conditions; the failure of any new products to be accepted in the
marketplace; decreased investment in robotics generally, and in the Company's
intelligent automation products particularly, as a result of general or specific
economic conditions or conditions affecting any of the Company's primary
markets; decreased acceptance of the Company's current products in the
marketplace, and the other factors discussed in or incorporated by reference in
this Report. The following discussion of the Company's business should be read
in conjunction with the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements and
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations, including the section entitled "Significant Fluctuations in
Operating Results," which information is incorporated by reference herein.
SILMA, SoftMachines and the Company's logo are registered trademarks of
Adept Technology, Inc. Adept, AdeptModules, AdeptMotion, Adept MV-5, Adept MV-8,
Adept MV-19, AdeptOne, AdeptThree, AdeptThree-XL, AdeptVision VME, Adept 1850,
Adept 550, Adept Flexible Feeder, Adept FlexFeedware, AIM, CimStation,
MotionWare, PalletWare, AdeptRAPID, SoftAssembly, V+ and VisionWare are
trademarks of Adept Technology, Inc. This Report also includes trademarks of
companies other than Adept Technology, Inc.
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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Introduction
Adept Technology, Inc. ("Adept" or the "Company") designs, manufactures
and markets intelligent automation software and hardware products for
manufacturers in the electronics, telecommunications, appliances,
pharmaceutical, food processing and automotive components industries. The
Company provides a broad, flexible line of software intensive, computer-driven,
automation products for assembly, material handling and packaging applications.
The Company's products include machine controllers for robot mechanisms and
other flexible automation equipment, machine vision systems, simulation software
and a family of mechanisms including robots, a vision-based flexible part feeder
and linear modules.
Adept's Rapid Deployment Automation ("RDA") approach addresses many of
the challenges facing manufacturers seeking to implement intelligent automation
systems. The goal of RDA is to significantly reduce the total time required to
conceptualize, justify, quote, sell, implement, and change over an intelligent
automation system, and thereby eliminate significant barriers to the broad
deployment of intelligent automation technology.
The Company sells, markets and supports its products on a worldwide
basis through more than 200 system integrators, its direct sales force and
original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs"). The system integrators, OEMs or end
users combine various components of Adept's standard product line with material
handling devices, peripheral equipment, application software and tooling into
flexible automation workcells or production lines.
Industry Background
Industrial robots provided the foundation for the development of the
intelligent automation industry. In the 1970s, robots with simple controllers
that lacked sensing capabilities became widely used in the automotive industry
for technologically simple, low precision applications such as spot welding. By
the late 1970s, industrial robots with more advanced capabilities became
commercially available. These new capabilities included computer-based motion
controllers which enabled flexible, programmable motion, and machine vision
systems which enabled computer analysis of camera images. With these technical
advances, robots gained increased acceptance, but their use remained limited
because their rudimentary software and sensing capabilities were insufficient to
support more demanding tasks such as those required on flexible assembly lines.
During the early 1980s, technical advances enabled robots to perform a
wide range of functions in new applications such as assembly, material handling
and packaging. These advances included sophisticated sensing for robot guidance
that allowed robots to locate, correctly orient and pick up parts, conveyor
tracking that made it possible to handle parts from moving conveyors and
direct-drive robots that were faster and more accurate than gear-driven robots.
In addition, real-time multitasking software enabled the coordination of the
many asynchronous tasks required in assembly, material handling and packaging.
This greater functionality made robots viable in a broad range of production
environments. The development of advanced software and sensory products, coupled
with high level programming languages and computer-based controller
architectures, contributed to the establishment of the intelligent automation
industry.
The ability of intelligent automation to address new applications such
as assembly, material handling and packaging is reflected in the growth of the
intelligent automation industry in the 1990s. According to the
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Robotic Industries Association, shipments by U.S. robot suppliers grew from $455
million in 1992 to $934 million in 1996. In addition, according to the Automated
Imaging Association, shipments by North American machine vision suppliers grew
from $638 million in 1992 to $1.3 billion in 1996.
Market Forces
Market forces in certain manufacturing industries have contributed to
the growth of the intelligent automation industry. These market forces include:
World class product quality. Manufacturers competing in global markets
must provide products that meet the highest quality standards of their
customers. Manufacturers across a wide range of industries have found that
replacing manual production lines with automated lines has resulted in a
significant reduction in product defects and has enabled volume production of
high quality, technologically advanced products.
Time-to-volume production. Rapid achievement of full volume production
is critical to increasing or simply retaining market share in most markets
today. As a result, the financial return a manufacturer achieves on a new
product depends in significant part on quickly achieving volume production.
Miniaturization. Many products, such as camcorders, disk drives and
portable audio products, have been steadily shrinking in size and are now at an
advanced state of miniaturization. Human eyes and hands are inherently
inaccurate and can generate particles that destroy certain miniature parts and
circuits and, as a result, automation is often required to improve accuracy and
maintain a clean environment. In addition, because certain parts exhibit high
part-to-part variability, the assembly of these products can often only be
successfully performed with the aid of real-time sensory feedback to accurately
acquire, inspect and align parts.
Declining automation costs, rising labor costs. The price performance
ratio of automation products has improved over time, while labor costs have
risen in most industrial regions of the world. According to the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics, total manufacturing compensation rates in the U.S., including
wages, salaries and employer costs for employee benefits, have increased an
average of 3% per annum from 1990 to 1996. Moreover, the appeal of offshore
manufacturing is waning for some manufacturers who previously moved operations
offshore but have more recently increased their domestic manufacturing
operations.
Challenges Facing Manufacturers
Despite the expanding use and application of intelligent automation in
numerous industries, significant challenges nonetheless remain for manufacturers
who seek to implement intelligent automation systems.
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Increasing need for flexibility. To achieve widespread deployment,
intelligent automation must become as flexible as traditional manual production
lines. Rapidly contracting product life cycles, shrinking batch sizes,
increasing miniaturization, product line proliferation and the high cost of
capital equipment are causing manufacturers to seek flexible manufacturing
techniques. These techniques must allow manufacturers to quickly and
cost-effectively change over production lines so that such production lines can
be used for multiple products and over multiple product life cycles. In
addition, these techniques must enable manufacturers to adapt to part and
process variability.
High risk custom engineering content. A significant amount of custom
content is engineered into most automated manufacturing lines. Custom content is
time consuming to develop and implement, and makes it difficult to predict
system throughput, yield and cost. Manufacturing managers who are new to
automation are reluctant to implement an automation line when these key
performance factors are at risk, and often have automated their production lines
only after competitors have established a new manufacturing standard and a
proven approach. In addition, custom hardware and software increase the cost and
difficulty associated with training personnel and supporting automated systems
and also make product changeover another engineering task.
Shortage of manufacturing engineers. The implementation of most
automation lines requires both mechanical engineering and advanced computer
programming skills. As a result, experience with software programming and
workcell architecture has been critical to the design of systems that perform to
expectations. However, there is a shortage of manufacturing engineers who have
the combination of skills and experience needed to implement intelligent
automation systems. Moreover, many manufacturers are decreasing their
manufacturing engineering staff, thereby reducing the available pool of
experienced manufacturing engineers.
Long sales and implementation cycle. It can be several years from the
time a manufacturer first considers establishing an automated line to the time
the automation system is installed and operating satisfactorily. The sales and
implementation cycle includes conceptualizing, justifying, quoting, selling and
implementing the automation line. This long sales and implementation cycle
increases the perceived risk of automation and fails to address time-to-volume
production requirements in industries with short product life cycles. In
addition, the Company believes that because users typically purchase subsequent
systems only after they are satisfied with their initial systems, the long sales
and implementation cycle has limited the growth of the intelligent automation
industry.
All of the challenges set forth above contribute to higher risks and
costs in implementing intelligent automation. Eliminating or significantly
reducing these potential problems improves the economic and technological
justifications for utilizing intelligent automation. The intelligent automation
suppliers that are best able to meet these challenges will be better positioned
to achieve significant competitive advantages.
The Adept Solution
The Company's RDA approach addresses many of the challenges faced today
by manufacturers seeking to implement intelligent automation systems. The goal
of RDA is to significantly reduce the total time required to conceptualize,
justify, quote, sell and implement an intelligent automation system, and thereby
eliminate significant barriers to the broad deployment of intelligent automation
technology. RDA is implemented through a line of hardware and software products,
including machine controllers for robot mechanisms and other flexible automation
equipment, machine vision systems, vision-based flexible part
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feeders, simulation software, and a family of mechanisms including robots and
linear modules. The following diagram illustrates the Company's RDA approach:
[GRAPHIC OMITTED]
[Depiction of Adept's Rapid Deployment Automation Approach which includes the
RDA System Design Layer, the RDA Process Knowledge Layer, the RDA Real-Time
Control Layer and the RDA Mechanical Component Layer.]
The Company seeks to provide the following key benefits to
manufacturers through its RDA approach:
Increased flexibility. Adept believes that software and sensory
products are the key elements of flexible automation solutions. Through its
software intensive, computer-driven approach to intelligent automation, the
Company distinguishes itself from companies that attempt to address the
challenges of automation solely with hardware solutions. Software and sensory
products provide the flexibility to quickly reconfigure production lines for
product change-overs and to respond to product or process variations. For
example, the Company's machine vision products minimize the need for time
consuming set ups and enable inspection of critical part dimensions. In
addition, the Company's scalable controller hardware is highly configurable,
includes local area networking capability and can control a simple, stand alone
robot or be expanded to control multiple robots.
Reduced custom engineering. Adept provides a broad range of modular
components which are designed to significantly reduce the custom engineering
required to implement intelligent automation. The Company's scalable controller
is the foundation of this architecture, allowing these modular components to be
quickly configured into complex systems and reconfigured as needs change. In
addition, Adept has established relationships with automation vendors who offer
components which complement the Company's
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RDA product line. Adept believes that the combination of its modular scalable
product line and relationships with other automation vendors significantly
reduces custom engineering and its associated support risks.
Reduced dependence on manufacturing engineers. Adept believes that
programming an automation workcell should not require extensive software
programming expertise. The Company has developed smart application software
products which utilize icon-based programming and are based on its Assembly and
Information Management ("AIM") software technology. In addition, the Company
works closely with over 200 system integrators worldwide which provide end users
with outside engineering resources to deliver application specific solutions
incorporating the Company's products.
Shortened implementation cycle. The combination of flexibility, ease of
implementation and modularity allows Adept products to be quickly integrated
into standard workcells or production lines. Ease of integration is further
enhanced by providing industry standard networking and communication interfaces.
The Company's simulation software products further shorten the implementation
cycle by reducing the time required to design and test automation concepts.
Adept believes that its RDA approach combined with the expertise of system
integrators and customer support and training can significantly reduce
implementation time.
Strategy
The Company's objective is to become the leading supplier worldwide of
a broad line of intelligent automation products for assembly, material handling
and packaging applications. The Company's strategy to achieve this objective
includes the following elements:
Expand Rapid Deployment Automation. Adept's goal is to compress the
sales and implementation cycle of intelligent automation systems through the
expansion of its RDA approach. Adept is pursuing this goal through new
developments including simulation software, AIM software technology, robot
mechanisms and unique flexible feeding products. The Company believes that a
shorter sales and implementation cycle will contribute to increased demand for
intelligent automation as the Company's products enable manufacturers to meet
time-to-volume requirements using the Company's RDA products.
Extend technology leadership. Adept's expertise in machine controllers
for robots and other flexible automation equipment, machine vision systems and
simulation software has enabled it to be a leading innovator in the development
of intelligent automation products. Adept seeks to leverage its existing
technology base to accelerate the development of new and enhanced products and
to lower costs. The Company intends to continue to make significant investments
in research and development in order to broaden its technology.
Continue to focus on higher growth application segments. Adept's
strategy is to continue to target the higher growth segments of the intelligent
automation market, such as assembly, material handling and packaging
applications. These applications are used in a broad range of industries,
including electronics, telecommunications, appliances, pharmaceuticals, food
processing and automotive components. Diversification across a broad range of
industries should maximize the Company's opportunities for growth and should
reduce Adept's dependence on the capital spending cycles of any one industry.
Maximize sales through complementary channels. Adept's strategy is to
build end user demand for its products through its direct sales force while
utilizing a network of experienced system integrators and OEMs to provide
turnkey intelligent automation systems. The Company's direct sales force
provides a
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strong ongoing presence at the end user level by providing product information,
assistance in designing solutions to production issues and referrals to
application-specific system integrators. Adept seeks to continually strengthen
its important channel relationships by providing certain system integrators with
qualified leads and by working with its system integrators to jointly build
demand for the Company's products rather than competing with them in their
systems business.
Increase global market presence. A key element of Adept's strategy is
to increase its presence in the global intelligent automation market by further
expansion in markets which the Company believes represent substantial
opportunities, including Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim. The Company seeks to
increase its market share in these areas by emphasizing its advanced software
and sensing technology and broad, flexible product line. In addition, Adept
intends to continue to make significant investments in marketing, sales and
support in international markets.
Leverage manufacturing strength. Adept seeks to focus its manufacturing
resources on activities which enable the Company to differentiate its product
line and add distinctive value. Adept's manufacturing activities include the
assembly, test and configuration of its products. This strategy enables the
Company to leverage product development, manufacturing and management resources
while retaining greater control over product delivery, final product
configuration and the timing of new product introductions, all of which are
critical to meeting customer expectations.
Technology
The Company's technology integrates the following key elements of RDA:
mechanical design, machine controller design, advanced servo systems, motion
control software, machine vision software, real-time database management
software and simulation software. The following table lists the Company's
technology by RDA layer:
[GRAPHIC OMITTED]
[Chart Illustrating Adept's technology with respect to the four levels of its
Rapid Deployment Automation approach]
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Hardware
Direct-drive robot technology. The Company was the first to develop and
market a robot incorporating direct-drive motor technology. Direct-drive
technology eliminates gears and linkages from the drive train of the mechanism,
thereby significantly increasing robot speed and improving the robot's product
life, reliability and accuracy.
Controller technology. The Company has applied its expertise in high
performance motion control to the design of an open architecture, VME bus-based
scalable machine controller. The scalability of this architecture allows the
same basic components to be combined into a number of controller configurations
that cost-effectively address a range of requirements from low end systems which
control a single robot to high end, complex systems which control multiple
mechanisms and incorporate machine vision. In addition, all of the Company's
controller products support the same Windows NT-based graphical user interface
and can execute the same application programs, thereby allowing software
development investments to be leveraged across a number of applications.
The controller includes a number of technologically advanced
capabilities designed specifically to address the intelligent automation market,
including: special ASICs for controlling direct-drive motors, reading encoders
and controlling power up sequencing of complex high power systems; safety
circuits that meet domestic and international specifications; technology to
protect the controller from voltage spikes, electrical noise and power
brownouts; and high wattage (6000 watt) switching power amplifiers.
Software
Servo software. The most basic level in Adept's software architecture
is the servo software which directs individual motors to follow motion commands
generated from the higher V+ software level. This software has been designed to
provide closed-loop control for the Company's robots as well as other vendors'
robots. The servo software layer includes algorithms for adaptive feed-forward
control, direct-drive motor control, force control and position control, and a
number of safety and diagnostic features.
Real-time programming language and operating system software. The next
level in the software architecture is the V+ programming language and operating
system layer. V+ allows software developers to create automation software
systems and is the key enabling technology for the Company's intelligent
automation approach. This automation programming environment provides a high
level language coupled with a multitasking operating system and built in
capability for integrating robots, machine vision, sensors, workcell control and
general communications. These capabilities enable the development of
sophisticated application software that can adoptively control mechanical
systems based upon real-time sensory input while simultaneously maintaining
communication with other factory equipment.
V+ offers the user approximately 300 instructions for programming an
intelligent automation workcell. It includes a trajectory generator and
continuous path planner which compute the path of the robot's tool in real time
based upon predefined data or sensory input. V+ also includes a number of
network communication facilities and supports RS232, RS422, Ethernet, TCP/IP,
FTP and NFS. In addition, this software includes a multitasking, multiprocessor,
time-sliced, deterministic, real-time operating system. This operating system
allows V+ to execute dozens of tasks concurrently and permits control to pass
between tasks in a predictable manner, often several times per millisecond. The
V+ operating system also allows the installation of additional processors into
the controller and automatically reassigns tasks to optimize overall
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system performance, providing a key scalability feature not found in other
controllers. The development environment for V+ is Windows NT-based and allows
the customer to utilize industry standard PCs.
Machine vision. The real-time control layer of the software also
includes machine vision software technology, which quickly recognizes parts that
are randomly positioned and have an unknown orientation ranging up to 360
degrees, as compared with other solutions which simply locate translated images
with very limited rotation. The ability to quickly recognize parts which have
large variations in orientation is crucial for high speed part feeding where the
part orientation is not known, such as in flexible part feeders. The Company's
machine vision software can also measure part dimensions for inspection
purposes. Vision can be used to acquire parts from stationary locations or from
conveyors. Cameras can be stationary, fixed in the workcell or attached to a
robot.
Data driven module software. The next level in the Company's software
hierarchy is the AIM layer. AIM simplifies the implementation of intelligent
automation workcells by combining a point and click graphical user interface
with an icon-based programming method that does not require advanced computer
programming skills. This method combines task level statements with a high
performance real-time database, and a structure for representing process
knowledge.
The AIM task-level statements allow the developer to specify at a very
high level what operations the workcell is to perform, such as "insert a
component into a socket using vision to correct for part irregularities." This
command is automatically coupled to data contained in the real-time database
that specifies the physical aspects of the workcell, such as the location of a
part. The information contained in the databases can be created or downloaded
from a computer or simulation system at any time. Finally, the AIM system
automatically invokes the routines that capture the process knowledge and
dictate how the specified operation will be performed. In this way, an AIM
workcell can be "programmed" by a person who understands as few as ten process
actions rather than hundreds of programming instructions or thousands of lines
of conventional code.
The Company provides application-specific versions of AIM that have
built in process knowledge to address general motion, vision and part
palletizing applications. In addition, process knowledge can be added by end
users and system integrators, many of whom have developed their own AIM
application-specific packages. AIM is available in the Windows NT environment.
Simulation software. The highest level in the Company's software
architecture is the simulation software layer, developed by the Company's Silma
division, a leader in the field of simulation software. Silma's core product,
CimStation, allows machines to be modeled with 3D graphics, and then animated in
response to software control programs. Mechanisms can be defined graphically and
the mathematics necessary to animate them (kinematic models) are generated
automatically. CimStation also allows the dynamics of mechanisms to be modeled,
which enables machine cycle times to be accurately predicted. Recently Silma has
added additional CAD interfaces to this core technology for certain markets.
CimStation is available on several UNIX workstation platforms as well as Windows
NT on the PC.
New Technology
During fiscal year 1997 the Company introduced certain products,
including AdeptWindows which will allow the Company's customers to do all
development work, including vision applications, on the PC in the Windows 95 and
NT operating systems. This open architecture product allows customers to combine
the features of the Company's AIM and V+ software products with other PC-based
software products. Shipments
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of AdeptWindows commenced in Q4 of fiscal 1997. In addition, the Company has
introduced FlexFeedWare, an extension of Adept AIM MotionWare, which enables
customers faster and easier implementation of the Company's Flexible Feeder. The
Company has also introduced MV Controller Integration Kits which provide an
integrated plug and play solution for connecting AdeptModules with the MV
Controller. Shipments of MV Controller Integration Kits began in the second half
of fiscal 1997.
Products
The Company's core product families include robot mechanisms and other
mechanical products, guidance and inspection vision products, vision based
flexible part feeders, machine controllers, machine control software and
simulation software. The following diagram depicts the Company's products by RDA
layer:
[GRAPHIC OMITTED]
[Depiction of Adept's products with respect to the four layers of its Rapid
Deployment Automation approach.]
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Robot Mechanisms and Other Mechanical Products
The Company designs and manufactures two SCARA (Selective Compliance
Assembly Robot Arm) style robot mechanisms called the AdeptOne and the recently
introduced AdeptThree-XL, which are both designed for assembly, material
handling and packaging tasks. The links and joints of a SCARA robot are somewhat
analogous to the shoulder, elbow and wrist of a human. This configuration is
well suited to a large number of assembly and material handling tasks. The
AdeptOne is the faster model, while the Adept Three-XL offers a larger work
envelope and handles a larger payload. The AdeptThree-XL provides improved
performance specifications over its predecessor, the AdeptThree. The improved
performance specifications address the needs in the packaging market as well as
other markets. This product has been designed to deliver increased performance
and ease-of-use, thereby furthering the Company's RDA strategy. Each of these
robots utilize direct-drive motor technology.
The Company also sources and markets two robot mechanisms, which are
built to the Company's specifications by Hirata Corporation ("Hirata"). The
Adept 550 robot is a light-duty SCARA robot that can be table mounted and offers
a small work envelope when space is at a premium. The Adept 1850 robot is a
palletizing robot which is used to palletize completed product assemblies or
packaged products at the end of an assembly line and allows customers to perform
this task with a robot that uses the same control and software architecture as
the upstream assembly line.
The Company also offers a line of linear modules, called AdeptModules,
which the Company purchases from NSK Ltd. ("NSK"). These single axis devices can
be coupled together by the user to form a custom robot mechanism for
applications requiring a robot with fewer than four axes.
Guidance and Inspection Vision Products
The Company offers a line of machine vision products, the AdeptVision
VME line, which are used for robot guidance and inspection applications. For the
guidance applications, AdeptVision VME is added into the controller by inserting
a printed circuit board and enabling the vision system software. For inspection
applications such as gauging and dimensioning, the AdeptVision VME product is
sold as an integrated inspection vision system comprised of a controller with
the vision board and software.
Machine Controllers
The Company's controller products are based on the VME bus architecture
standard. A large array of controller configurations are possible depending on
the features selected by the customer. The Company's controllers are configured
on a five slot chassis, called the Adept MV-5, or a ten slot chassis, called the
Adept MV-10 All controllers include a system processor board and a system
input/output module. Additional functionality can be incorporated by adding
printed circuit boards and additional software. For example, motion control is
added by inserting a motion control board. Printed circuit boards can be added
for machine vision, graphical user interface capability and additional
communication inputs and outputs. The controller products are sold independently
for machine control and inspection vision applications and are also sold as a
component of the robot systems.
Machine Control Software
Adept's V+ programming language and operating system software includes
specific instructions for motion control, machine vision, force sensing,
workcell control and general communications. These
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capabilities are integrated to perform real-time machine control. The basic V+
software is included in the price of the system.
The Company's AIM software simplifies the integration, programming and
operation of automation workcells and lines. AIM accomplishes this goal by
providing a formal method for capturing application specific process knowledge
and then allowing users lacking advanced programming expertise to use this
embedded knowledge to accomplish a specific task. Several application specific
versions of AIM are sold by the Company, including MotionWare, which addresses
motion applications such as those requiring sophisticated conveyor tracking,
VisionWare, which simplifies the use of vision in both guidance and inspection
applications, and PalletWare, which includes special knowledge of box
palletizing strategies.
Simulation Software
Adept's simulation software products simulate the layout and throughput
of workcells and other equipment and generate the programs to run the workcells.
The CimStation Robotics product simulates robot workcells for the Company's
robot products as well as a number of other robot vendors' products. This
product is used to test layouts and cycle times and to generate robot
application programs. The CimStation Inspection product simulates the operation
of coordinate measurement machines and generates programs that would be tedious
to program manually given the complex inspection tasks these machines perform.
The SoftMachines product tests programs for machine tool operations. This is a
productivity tool for machine tool users who would otherwise have to perform the
time consuming task of testing programs on the machine tool itself. A new
product called SoftAssembly is used to simulate and test product assembly and to
develop assembly sequences and procedures. Finally, AdeptRAPID is a robotic
simulation product tailored specifically for Adept robots, standard industry
peripherals, and Adept's AIM software, that is designed to quickly generate
alternative conceptual layouts and cycle time estimates for implementing an
intelligent automation system. It can also be used to create AIM databases
automatically. Both CimStation Inspection and AdeptRAPID have been expanded to
operate under Windows NT with the functionality of the Company's UNIX products.
The Company anticipates the new PC based products will generate new
opportunities within manufacturing organizations that are more accustomed to
working in a PC versus UNIX environment. The Company commenced UNIX-based
shipments of AdeptRAPID to beta sites during fiscal year 1996 and shipped
production units throughout fiscal year 1997. Shipments of PC-based AdeptRAPID
and CimStation Inspection products commenced in the second half of fiscal 1997.
Vision-Based Flexible Feeder
Part feeding has historically been accomplished by designing custom
devices that could only accommodate a single part or class of parts. The Company
has developed a new flexible feeder, the Adept Flexible Feeder, which can be
rapidly reconfigured through software to accommodate new products and a wide
variety of parts ranging from simple rectangular objects to complex molded or
machined parts, thus preserving the flexibility of the workcell or production
line. The Adept Flexible Feeder integrates machine vision, software, and motion
control technology with a simple mechanical device. The Adept Flexible Feeder
recirculates the parts and separates them, relying on vision to identify
individual parts. This product is currently in low-volume production, and
additional design work must be performed in order to optimize end user cost and
performance. There can be no assurance that the development of this product will
be completed in a timely manner or that this product will achieve widespread
market acceptance.
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Customers and Applications
The Company sells its products to system integrators, end users and
OEMs. End users of the Company's products include a broad range of manufacturing
companies in the electronics, telecommunications, appliances, pharmaceutical,
food processing and automotive components industries. These companies use
Adept's products to perform a wide variety of functions in assembly, material
handling and packaging applications, including mechanical assembly, printed
circuit board assembly, dispensing, palletizing and inspection. No customer
accounted for more than 10% of the Company's net revenues in fiscal 1997, 1996
or 1995.
Sales, Distribution and Marketing
Sales and Distribution
The Company markets its products through system integrators, its direct
sales force and OEMs.
System Integrators. A substantial portion of the Company's shipments is
through system integrators, and the Company views its relationships with these
organizations as important to the Company's success. The Company has established
relationships with over 200 system integrators worldwide that provide expertise
and process knowledge for a wide range of specific applications. These
relationships are generally not regional and are mutually nonexclusive, although
the Company continuously works to earn voluntary exclusive use of its products
through product performance and support. The greater the investment in equipment
and training and the higher the purchase volume, the greater the discount the
system integrator receives. In certain international markets, the system
integrators perform marketing and support functions directly.
A substantial portion of the Company's sales are to system integrators
that specialize in designing and building production lines for manufacturers.
Many of these companies are small operations with limited financial resources,
and the Company has on occasion experienced difficulty in collecting payments
from certain of these companies. As a result, the Company performs ongoing
credit evaluations of its customers and does not require collateral. However,
the Company may require customers to make payments in advance of shipment or to
provide a letter of credit. The Company provides reserves for potential credit
losses, and such losses have been within the Company's expectations. To the
extent the Company is unable to mitigate this risk of collections from system
integrators, the Company's results of operations may be materially adversely
affected. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that any of these system
integrators will not discontinue their relationships with the Company or enter
into competing arrangements with the Company's competitors. In the event a
number of the Company's system integrators experience financial problems,
terminate their relationships with the Company or substantially reduce the
amount of the Company's products they sell, or in the event the Company fails to
build an effective systems integrator channel in any new markets, the Company's
business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially
adversely affected.
Direct Sales Force. The Company employs a direct sales force which
calls on end users to communicate the capabilities of the Company's products and
support services and obtain up-to-date information on market requirements.
Adept's sales force possesses specific expertise in automation solutions and
advises end users on alternative production line designs, special application
techniques, equipment sources and system integrator selection. This sales force
works closely with system integrators and OEMs to integrate the Adept product
line into their systems, provides sales leads to certain system integrators and
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obtains intelligent automation system quotes from system integrators for end
users. As of June 30, 1997, the Company's North American sales organization
included 15 individuals. The Company has four sales and customer support offices
in North America, located in San Jose, California; Southbury, Connecticut;
Southfield, Michigan; and Cincinnati, Ohio. As of June 30, 1997, the Company's
international sales organization included eleven persons covering Europe, Japan,
Singapore, and South Korea. The Company has seven international sales and
customer support offices located in Dortmund, Germany; Massy, France; Arezzo,
Italy; Toyohashi, Japan; Kenilworth, the United Kingdom; Seoul, South Korea; and
Singapore.
Some of the Company's larger manufacturing end user customers have
in-house engineering departments that are comparable to a captive system
integrator. These captive engineering groups can establish a corporate
integrator relationship with the Company that offers benefits similar to those
provided to the Company's system integrators.
OEMs. The Company's OEM customers typically purchase one standard
product configuration, which the OEM integrates with additional hardware and
software and sells under the OEM's label to other resellers and end users.
The sale of the Company's products generally involves the delays
frequently associated with large capital expenditures. The Company's net
revenues depend in significant part upon the decision of a prospective customer
to upgrade or expand existing manufacturing facilities or to construct new
manufacturing facilities, all of which typically involve a significant capital
commitment. In the event one or more large orders fails to close as forecasted
for a quarter, the Company's net revenues and operating results for such quarter
could be materially adversely affected.
International sales for the fiscal years ended June 30, 1997, 1996 and
1995 were $29.6 million, $32.2 million and $24.0 million, respectively,
representing 35.8%, 39.4%, and 40.6% of net revenues for the respective periods.
The Company anticipates that international sales will continue to account for a
significant portion of its net revenues; however, there can be no assurance that
international sales will increase or that the current level of international
sales will be sustained. The Company's operating results are subject to the
risks inherent in international sales and purchases, including, but not limited
to, various regulatory requirements, political and economic changes and
disruptions, transportation delays, foreign currency fluctuations, export/import
controls, tariff regulations, higher freight rates, difficulties in staffing and
managing foreign sales operations, greater difficulty in accounts receivable
collection and potentially adverse tax consequences.
Marketing
Adept's marketing organization, which consisted of 46 persons as of
June 30, 1997, supports the Company's various channels in a number of ways.
Product management works with end users, system integrators, corporate
integrators, and the Company's sales engineers to continuously gather input on
product performance and end user needs. This information is used to enhance
existing products and to develop new products. A marketing programs group
generates and qualifies new business through industrial trade shows, various
direct marketing programs such as direct mail and telemarketing, public
relations efforts and advertising in industry periodicals. This marketing group
is responsible for tracking customers and prospects through the Company's
marketing database. The marketing group also publishes a document called the MVP
catalog, which lists software and hardware components that have been certified
by Adept to be compatible with the Company's product line. The Company also
expends considerable effort on the development of thorough technical
documentation and user manuals for the Adept product line, and views
well-designed
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manuals as critical to simplifying the installation, programming, use and
maintenance of the Company's products.
Backlog
The Company's product backlog at June 30, 1997 was approximately $20.5
million, as compared with approximately $13.0 million at June 30, 1996. The
Company includes in its backlog customer orders for products for which it has
accepted signed purchase orders with assigned delivery dates within nine months
in the case of sales to end users and system integrators, and one year in the
case of sales to OEMs. The Company's business is characterized by short term
order and shipment schedules. Because orders constituting the Company's current
backlog are subject to changes in delivery schedules and in certain instances
may be subject to cancellation without significant penalty, and because the
Company utilizes its backlog to balance seasonal fluctuations in its bookings,
and the sales cycle has continued to shorten, the Company's backlog at any date
may not be indicative of demand for the Company's products or actual net
revenues for any period in the future. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis
of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," which is incorporated by
reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the section titled
"Significant Fluctuations in Quarterly Operating Results."
Services and Support
The Company's service and support organization, which consisted of 73
persons as of June 30, 1997, is designed to support the customer from the design
of the automation line through ongoing support of the installed system. This
organization included 32 application engineers/programmers as of June 30, 1997
based in a number of the Company's sales offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
This team is experienced in applying the Company's product line to solve a wide
array of application issues, and operates toll-free telephone support lines
called "the Hotline" to provide advice on issues such as software programming
structure, layout problems and system installation. End users and system
integrators can also hire these experts on a consulting basis to help resolve
new or difficult application issues.
The Company also maintains a team of instructors, consisting of seven
instructors as of June 30, 1997, which develops training courses on subjects
ranging from basic system maintenance to advanced programming. These courses are
geared both for manufacturing engineers who design and implement automation
lines and for operators who operate and maintain equipment once it is in
production.
The Company's field service organization, which consisted of 41 persons
as of June 30, 1997, is based in six service centers located in San Jose,
California; Cincinnati, Ohio; Massy, France; Dortmund, Germany; Arezzo, Italy,
Toyohashi, Japan; Seoul, South Korea and Singapore. The field-based service
engineers maintain and repair Adept products at the end user's facilities.
Personnel based at these service centers also provide advice to customers on
spare parts, product upgrades, and preventative maintenance.
Research and Development
The Company's research and development efforts are focused on the
design of intelligent automation products which address the challenges of
designing, implementing, installing, operating and modifying automated
production lines. The Company intends to focus its research and development
efforts on the development of an integrated product line which further
implements the Company's RDA approach and which reduces cost, enhances
performance and improves ease of use.
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The Company has devoted, and intends to devote in the future, a
significant portion of its resources to research and development programs. As of
June 30, 1997, the Company had 78 persons, including four temporary or contract
personnel, engaged in research, development, and engineering. The Company's
research, development and engineering expenses for fiscal 1997, 1996 and 1995
were approximately $9.0 million, $8.1 million and $6.6 million, respectively,
and represented 10.9%, 9.9% and 11.2%, respectively, of net revenues.
The Company's future success will depend on its ability to enhance its
existing products and to develop and introduce, on a timely and cost-effective
basis, new products and enhancements that keep pace with technological
developments and address the needs of its customers. The Company is currently
developing a number of new products intended to further implement RDA's goal of
providing easy to use intelligent automation systems to the end user.
The development and commercialization of new products involve many
risks, including the identification of new product opportunities, the retention
and hiring of appropriate research and development personnel, the definition of
the product's technical specifications, the successful completion of the
development process and the successful marketing of the product. The development
of these products has required, and will require, the Company to expend
significant financial and management resources.
The markets in which the Company competes are characterized by rapid
technological change and new product introductions and enhancements. The
Company's ability to remain competitive and its future success will depend in
significant part upon the technological quality of its products and processes
relative to those of its competitors and its ability both to develop new and
enhanced products and to introduce such products at competitive prices and on a
timely and cost effective basis. There can be no assurance that the Company will
be successful in selecting, developing and manufacturing new products or in
enhancing its existing products on a timely basis or at all, or that such
products will achieve market acceptance. The success of the Company in
developing, introducing, selling and supporting new and enhanced products
depends upon a variety of factors, including timely and efficient completion of
hardware and software design and development, timely and efficient
implementation of manufacturing processes, and effective sales, marketing and
customer service. In addition, because of the complexity of the Company's
products, significant delays can occur between a product's initial introduction
in the market and commencement of volume production. In addition, new or
existing software products or enhancements may contain errors or performance
problems when first introduced, when new versions or enhancements are released,
or even after such products or enhancements have been used in the marketplace
for a period of time. Despite testing by the Company, such defects may be
discovered only after a product has been installed and used by customers. There
can be no assurance that such errors or performance problems will not be
discovered in future shipments of the Company's products, resulting in expensive
and time consuming design modifications or large warranty charges, damaging
customer relationships and resulting in loss of market share, any of which could
have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition
and results of operations.
Manufacturing
Adept seeks to focus its manufacturing resources on activities which
enable the Company to differentiate its product line and add distinctive value.
Adept's manufacturing activities include the assembly, test, and configuration
of its products. The Company believes that by performing these operations it can
better ensure the quality and performance of its products. The Company
outsources low unit volume, low value-added manufacturing operations, including
standard and build-to-print fabricated parts such as
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machinery, sheet metal fabrication and assembled printed circuit boards. The
Company also sources some robot mechanisms. The purchased robot mechanisms are
tested to meet defined quality standards and then configured into complete
products which are tested again prior to shipment to the customer. This strategy
enables the Company to leverage product development, manufacturing and
management resources while retaining greater control over product delivery,
final product configuration and the timing of new product introductions, all of
which are critical to meeting customer expectations.
The Company's manufacturing organization has expertise in mechanical,
electrical, electronic and software assembly and test. In addition, because
outstanding quality and reliability over the life of the Company's products are
key to customer satisfaction and customers' repeat purchases of automation
products, the Company believes its quality assurance plans and organization are
a key part of its business strategy. The Company's quality assurance
organization develops detailed instructions for all manufacturing and test
operations. These instructions are established in writing, implemented through
training of the manufacturing work force, and monitored to assure compliance. In
addition, the Company's quality assurance organization works closely with
vendors to develop instructions and to remedy quality problems if they arise.
The Company obtains many key components and materials and some
significant mechanical subsystems from sole or single source suppliers. The
Company purchases components, materials and mechanical subsystems from sole or
single source suppliers pursuant to purchase orders placed from time to time in
the ordinary course of business and has no guaranteed supply arrangements with
such suppliers. Certain of these components and mechanical subsystems have long
procurement lead times. The Company's reliance on sole or single source
suppliers involves several significant risks, including loss of control over the
manufacturing process, the potential absence of adequate supplier capacity,
potential inability to obtain an adequate supply of required components,
materials or mechanical subsystems and reduced control over manufacturing
yields, costs, timely delivery, reliability and quality of components, materials
or mechanical subsystems. In the event that any significant sole or single
source supplier were unable or unwilling to manufacture certain components,
materials or mechanical subsystems in required volumes, the Company would be
required to identify and qualify acceptable replacements. The process of
qualifying suppliers could be lengthy, and there can be no assurance that any
additional sources would be available to the Company on a timely basis or on
acceptable terms. If supplies of such items were not available from sole or
single source suppliers and a relationship with an alternative supplier could
not be timely developed, shipments of the Company's products could be
interrupted and reengineering of the affected product could be required. In
particular, the Company buys some significant mechanical subsystems from certain
sole source suppliers with lengthy procurement lead times, including robot
mechanisms from Hirata and NSK, image processing circuit boards from Imaging
Technology Incorporated and power transistors from International Rectifier
Corporation. Although to date the Company has not experienced any difficulty in
obtaining robot mechanisms or image processing circuit boards, from time to time
the Company has not obtained sufficient amounts of power transistors on a timely
basis, and has been required to use inventory scheduled for shipment in future
quarters to meet product demand. There can be no assurance that the Company will
not face shortages of one or more of these subsystems or components in the
future. Any failure by the Company to obtain sufficient robot mechanisms or
components on a timely basis could delay shipments of its products and could
have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition
and results of operations.
The Company could experience quality control problems with certain key
components provided by sole source suppliers, and may have to design around the
particular flawed item. The Company may also experience delays in filling
customer orders due to the failure of certain suppliers to meet the Company's
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volume and schedule requirements. Certain suppliers of the Company may also
cease manufacturing components which the Company requires for its products, and
the Company may be required to purchase sufficient supplies for the estimated
life of its product line. There can be no assurance that these or additional
problems will not occur in the future with the Company's suppliers. Disruption
or termination of the Company's supply sources could require the Company to pay
more for components, materials or mechanical subsystems, or to seek alternative
sources of supply, and could delay the Company's product shipments and damage
relationships with current and prospective customers, any of which could have a
material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition and
results of operations. If the Company incorrectly forecasts product mix for a
particular period and the Company is unable to obtain sufficient supplies of any
components or mechanical subsystems on a timely basis due to long procurement
lead times, the Company's business, financial condition and results of
operations could be materially adversely affected. Moreover, if demand for a
product for which the Company has purchased a substantial amount of components
fails to meet the Company's expectations, the Company would be required to write
off the excess inventory, thereby materially adversely affecting the Company's
results of operations. A prolonged inability to obtain adequate timely
deliveries of key components would have a material adverse effect on the
Company's business, financial condition and results of operations.
The Company's hardware products are required to comply with European
Union ("EU") electrical and safety Directives and Standards in certain European
countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. EU certification
mandates a rigorous examination of the Company's products by certain European
agencies for adherence to a number of stringent electrical and safety
requirements, and products must be designed to meet these standards. These
standards can change and are subject to varying interpretation. The Company has
certified that its current VME controller products and the Adept-550,
AdeptOne-MV and AdeptThree-MV and AdeptThree-XL robot products meet applicable
EU Directives and Standards. The Flexible Feeder has not yet been certified in
Europe, and there can be no assurance that the Company will receive such
certification. In the event any of the Company's robot products or any other
major hardware products were refused EU certification, the Company's European
sales and its business, financial condition and results of operations could be
materially adversely affected.
The Company is subject to a variety of environmental regulations
relating to the use, storage, handling, and disposal of certain hazardous
substances used in the manufacturing and assembly of the Company's products. The
Company believes that it is currently in compliance with all material
environmental regulations in connection with its manufacturing operations, and
that it has obtained all necessary environmental permits to conduct its
business. Any failure by the Company to comply with present or future
regulations could subject the Company to the imposition of substantial fines,
suspension of production, alteration of manufacturing processes or cessation of
operations, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company's
business, financial condition, and results of operations. Compliance with such
regulations could require the Company to acquire expensive remediation equipment
or to incur substantial expenses. Any failure of the Company to control the use,
disposal, removal, or storage of, or to adequately restrict the discharge of, or
assist in the cleanup of, hazardous or toxic substances, could subject the
Company to significant liabilities, including joint and several liability under
certain statutes. The imposition of such liabilities could materially adversely
affect the Company's business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Competition
The market for intelligent automation products is highly competitive.
The Company competes with a number of robot companies, motion control companies,
machine vision companies and simulation software
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companies. Many of the Company's competitors have substantially greater
financial, technical, marketing and other resources than the Company. Although
to date the Company's competitors have not offered a broad range of intelligent
automation products, it is possible that one or more of these competitors may in
the future, through acquisitions or otherwise, offer a more comprehensive line
of products which are competitive with a broader range of the Company's products
or with the Company's entire product line. In addition, the Company may in the
future face competition from new entrants in one or more of its markets. The
principal competitive factors affecting the market for the Company's products
are product functionality and reliability, customer service, price, and product
features such as flexibility, programmability and ease of use. The Company
believes that it competes favorably with respect to these factors. In addition,
to date the Company's competitors have been unable to successfully commercialize
direct drive technology, although there can be no assurance that one or more of
them will not do so in the future.
The Company's principal competitors in the U.S. robot market include
U.S. subsidiaries of Japan-based Fanuc Ltd. ("Fanuc"), Seiko Instruments
("Seiko"), Yamaha Corporation ("Yamaha"), Sony Corporation ("Sony"), Sankyo
Company Limited ("Sankyo"), and other Japanese robot companies. In the European
robot market, the Company principally competes with Robert Bosch GmbH, which to
date has sold most of its products in Germany, and with Fanuc, Seiko, Yamaha,
Sony, Sankyo, and other Japanese companies. In the Japanese robot market, over a
dozen robot companies compete with the Company, including Fanuc, Nippon Denso,
Panasonic Company, Sankyo, Seiko, Sony, Toshiba Corporation and Yamaha. Certain
of these large manufacturing companies have greater flexibility in pricing than
the Company, because they generate substantial unit volumes of robots for
internal demand and may have access through their parent companies to large
sources of capital. There can be no assurance that any of the Company's
competitors will not seek to expand its presence in other markets in which the
Company competes. In addressing the Japanese market, the Company is at a
competitive disadvantage as compared to Japanese suppliers, many of who have
long-standing collaborative relationships with Japanese manufacturers. Although
the Company expects to continue to invest significant resources in the Japanese
market in the future, there can be no assurance that the Company will be able to
achieve significant sales growth in the Japanese intelligent automation market.
The Company's principal competitors in the market for motion control
systems include Allen-Bradley Co. ("Allen-Bradley"), a subsidiary of Rockwell
International Corporation, in the United States, and Siemens AG in Europe. In
addition, the Company faces motion control competition from two major suppliers
of motion control boards, Galil Motion Control, Inc. and Delta Tau Data Systems,
Inc. These motion control boards are purchased by end users which engineer their
own custom motion control systems. In the simulation software market, the
Company's competitors include Tecnomatix Technologies, Inc., an Israel-based
company which sells mostly to major automotive manufacturers, and Deneb Robotics
Inc. In the machine vision market, the Company faces competition from Cognex
Corporation, Robotic Vision Systems Inc., and Allen-Bradley.
There can be no assurance that current or potential competitors of the
Company will not develop products comparable or superior in terms of price and
performance features to those developed by the Company or adapt more quickly
than the Company to new or emerging technologies and changes in customer
requirements. In addition, no assurance can be given that the Company will not
be required to make substantial additional investments in connection with its
research, development, engineering, marketing and customer service efforts in
order to meet any competitive threat, or that the Company will be able to
compete successfully in the future. The Company expects that in the event the
intelligent automation market expands, competition in the industry will
intensify, as additional competitors enter the Company's markets and current
competitors expand their product fines. Increased competitive pressure could
result in a loss of sales or
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market share, or cause the Company to lower prices for its products, any of
which could materially adversely affect the Company's business, financial
condition and results of operations.
Proprietary Technology and Intellectual Property
The Company relies on a combination of patent, copyright and trade
secret protection, and nondisclosure agreements to protect its proprietary
rights. In the U.S. the Company holds four hardware patents and two software
patents. The Company also holds one hardware patent issued in France, Germany,
Great Britain, Italy and Sweden, and relies on trade secrets principles to
protect its proprietary technology in real-time multi-tasking software
structure, continuous path motion control and assembly of robot mechanisms.
There can be no assurance, however, that patent law, copyright law and trade
secret protection will be adequate to deter misappropriation of its technology,
that any patents issued to the Company will not be challenged, invalidated or
circumvented, that the rights granted thereunder will provide competitive
advantages to the Company, or that the claims under any patent application will
be allowed.
The process of seeking patent protection can be time consuming and
expensive, and there can be no assurance that patents will issue from currently
pending or future applications or that the Company's existing patents or any new
patents that may be issued will be sufficient in scope or strength to provide
meaningful protection or any commercial advantage to the Company. Furthermore,
there can be no assurance that others will not independently develop similar
products, duplicate the Company's products or design around any patents issued
to the Company. The Company may be subject to or may initiate interference
proceedings in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which can demand
significant financial and management resources. In addition, a substantial
amount of the Company's sales are in international markets, and there can be no
assurance that foreign intellectual property law will adequately protect the
Company's intellectual property rights.
The Company has from time to time received communications from third
parties asserting that the Company is infringing certain patents and other
intellectual property rights of others or seeking indemnification against such
alleged infringement. As claims arise, the Company evaluates their merits. No
assurance can be given that any of these claims will not result in protracted
and costly litigation, that damages for infringement will not be assessed or
that should it be necessary or desirable to obtain a license relating to one or
more of the Company's products or current or future technologies, the Company
will be able to do so on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Litigation,
which could result in substantial cost to and diversion of resources of the
Company, may be necessary to enforce patents or other intellectual property
rights of the Company or to defend the Company against claimed infringement of
the rights of others. Any such litigation and the failure to obtain necessary
licenses or other rights could have a material adverse effect on the Company's
business, financial condition, and results of operations. In particular, one end
user of the Company's products has notified the Company that it has received a
claim of patent infringement from Jerome H. Lemelson, alleging that its use of
the Company's machine vision products infringe certain patents issued to Mr.
Lemelson. This end user of the Company's products is currently engaged in
litigation with Mr. Lemelson involving certain of these patents, and the
validity, enforceability and infringement of those patents have been placed in
issue. The Company has not been named in this litigation, although certain
products sold by the Company, as well as products of others, were identified in
connection with this litigation as part of an allegedly infringing use. Although
a recent magistrate report and recommendation concluded that Mr. Lemelson's
claims in such litigation should not be enforced because of laches, the federal
district court more recently determined that laches is not available as a
defense. The district court has also certified the decision for interlocutory
appeal and stayed the litigation pending the outcome of the appeal process. In
addition, the Company has been notified that other end users of the Company's
AdeptVision VME line and the
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predecessor line of Multibus machine vision products have received letters from
Mr. Lemelson which refer to Mr. Lemelson's patent portfolio and offer the end
user a license to the particular patents. Certain end users, including the end
user currently in litigation with Mr. Lemelson, have notified the Company that
they may seek indemnification from the Company for damages or expenses resulting
from these matters. The Company may incur significant costs if it is required to
indemnify any purchasers or users of the Company's products for damages or
expenses resulting from the litigation or if Mr. Lemelson elects to seek damages
directly from the Company. The Company cannot predict the outcome of this or any
similar litigation which may arise in the future, and although such products
have not represented a material portion of the Company's net revenues in fiscal
1997, 1996 or 1995, there can be no assurance that any such litigation will not
have a material adverse effect on the business, financial condition or results
of operations of the Company.
Employees
At June 30, 1997, the Company had 354 full-time employees, including
100 in operations, 150 in sales and marketing, 74 in engineering, and 30 in
administration. In addition, at June 30, 1997, the Company utilized the services
of 30 temporary or contract personnel, including 14 in operations, 10 in sales
and marketing, four in engineering and two in administration. The Company's
employees are not represented by any collective bargaining organization, and the
Company has never experienced a work stoppage. The Company believes that its
relationships with its employees are good.
The Company is highly dependent upon the continuing contributions of
its key management, sales, and product development personnel. In particular, the
Company would be materially adversely affected if it were to lose the services
of Brian Carlisle, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of
Directors of the Company, who has provided significant leadership to the Company
since its inception, or Bruce Shimano, Vice President, Research and Development
and a Director of the Company, who has guided the Company's research and
development programs since its inception. In addition, the loss of the services
of any of the Company's senior managerial, technical or sales personnel could
materially adversely affect the Company's business, financial condition, and
results of operations. The Company's future success also heavily depends on its
continuing ability, to attract, retain, and motivate highly qualified
managerial, technical and sales personnel. Competition for qualified technical
personnel in the intelligent automation industry is intense. The Company's
inability to recruit and train adequate numbers of qualified personnel on a
timely basis would adversely affect the Company's ability to design,
manufacture, market and support its products. The Company does not have
employment contracts with any of its executive officers and does not maintain
key man life insurance on the lives of any of its key personnel.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
The Company's headquarters and principal research and development and
manufacturing facilities are located in a 92,448 square foot leased building in
San Jose, California. The lease expires in December 2000 and provides for annual
lease payments of approximately $665,000 in calendar year 1997 and $1,110,000 in
calendar year 1998. The Company leases an additional 10,000 square feet in an
adjacent building in San Jose for its Silma division, which lease expires in
April 1998. The Company also leases a 3,596 square foot facility in City of
Industry, California at which the Company's software development group is based.
The City of Industry lease is in the process of being renewed for an additional
four year term and is subject to final negotiations and agreement. The Company
also leases facilities for sales and customer training in Southbury,
Connecticut; Southfield, Michigan; Cincinnati, Ohio; Massy, France; Dortmund,
Germany; Arezzo, Italy; Toyohashi, Japan; Kenilworth, the United Kingdom; Seoul,
South Korea; and Singapore. The Company anticipates seeking expanded facilities
for its headquarters at the termination of its
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headquarters lease and expects that it may need additional facilities to
accommodate its proposed expansion of operations. The Company believes that
suitable additional or substitute facilities will be available as required in
the future on commercially reasonable terms.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
From time to time, the Company is party to various legal proceedings or
claims, either asserted or unasserted, which arise in the ordinary course of the
Company's business. Management has reviewed pending legal matters and, except to
the extent set forth below, believes that the resolution of such matters will
not have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial
condition, or results of operations.
One end user of the Company's products has notified the Company that it
has received a claim of patent infringement from Jerome H. Lemelson, alleging
that its use of the Company's machine vision products infringe certain patents
issued to Mr. Lemelson. This end user of the Company's products is currently
engaged in litigation with Mr. Lemelson involving certain of these patents, and
the validity, enforceability and infringement of those patents have been placed
in issue. The Company has not been named in this litigation, although certain
products sold by the Company, as well as products of others, were identified in
connection with this litigation as part of an allegedly infringing use. Although
a recent magistrate report and recommendation concluded that Mr. Lemelson's
claims in such litigation should not be enforced because of laches, the federal
district court more recently determined that laches is not available as a
defense. The district court has also certified the decision for interlocutory
appeal and stayed the litigation pending the outcome of the appeal process. In
addition, the Company has been notified that other end users of the Company's
AdeptVision VME line and the predecessor line of Multibus machine vision
products have received letters from Mr. Lemelson which refer to Mr. Lemelson's
patent portfolio and offer the end user a license to the particular patents.
Certain end users, including the end user currently in litigation with Mr.
Lemelson, have notified the Company that they may seek indemnification from the
Company for damages or expenses resulting from these matters. The Company may
incur significant costs if it is required to indemnify any purchasers or users
of the Company's products for damages or expenses resulting from the litigation
or if Mr. Lemelson elects to seek damages directly from the Company. The Company
cannot predict the outcome of this or any similar litigation which may arise in
the future, and although such products have not represented a material portion
of the Company's net revenues in fiscal 1997, 1996 or 1995, there can be no
assurance that any such litigation will not have a material adverse effect on
the business, financial condition or results of operations of the Company.
-23-
ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS
Not Applicable.
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT
The executive officers of the Company are as follows:
Name Age Position
Brian R. Carlisle.................... 46 Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief
Executive Officer
Charles S. Duncheon.................. 46 Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales
Bruce E. Shimano..................... 48 Vice President, Research and Development, Secretary
and Director
Richard J. Casler, Jr................ 45 Vice President, Engineering
James E. Kuhl........................ 56 Vice President, Operations
Betsy A. Lange....................... 37 Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Brian R. Carlisle has served as the Company's Chief Executive Officer
and Chairman of the Board of Directors since he co-founded the Company in June
1983. From June 1980 to June 1983, he served as General Manager and from June
1977 to June 1980, he served as project manager of the West Coast Division of
Unimation, Inc. ("Unimation"), where he was responsible for new product strategy
and development for Unimation's electric robots, control systems, sensing
systems and other robotics applications. Mr. Carlisle received a B.S. and M.S.
in mechanical engineering from Stanford University.
Charles S. Duncheon has served as the Company's Senior Vice President
of Marketing and Sales since September 1988. From May 1984 to May 1987, he
served as General Sales Manager and from May 1987 to September 1988 as Vice
President of North American Sales. Prior to that time, Mr. Duncheon served in
various marketing positions with Fared Robot Systems, Inc., a robot company, and
in various engineering and manufacturing positions at Monsanto Corporation, an
international chemicals company. Mr. Duncheon received a B.S. in industrial
engineering from Purdue University and a M.B.A. from Southern Illinois
University.
Bruce E. Shimano has served as the Company's Vice President, Research
and Development, and as a director since he co-founded the Company in June 1983.
Prior to that time, he was Director of Software Development at Unimation. Mr.
Shimano received a B.S., a M.S. and a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from
Stanford University.
Richard J. Casler, Jr. has served as the Company's Vice President of
Engineering since April 1993 and from October 1992 to March 1993 served as
Director of Robot Interface Development. In October 1986, Mr. Casler co-founded
Genesis Automation, Inc., a developer of robots and automation for the service
industry, and served as its president until October 1992. From October 1981 to
October 1986, Mr. Casler was manager of product development at Unimation and at
Unimation's parent company, Westinghouse Electric Corporation. Mr. Casler
received a B.S. and a M.S. in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.
-24-
James E. Kuhl has served as the Company's Vice President of Operations
since November 1992. In September 1997, Mr. Kuhl announced his intention to
resign as the Company's Vice President of Operations as soon as the Company
employs a successor. The Company has initiated a search for a new Vice President
of Operations and believes a successor will be identified and hired in late 1997
or early 1998. From July 1991 to June 1992, Mr. Kuhl was Director of Operations
for PolyFlex Circuits, Inc., a manufacturer of flexible membrane printer
circuits. From February 1991 to June 1991, he served as manager of mechanical
engineering at Honeywell, Inc., an industrial automation company. Prior to that
time, Mr. Kuhl held various manufacturing and marketing management positions in
the microcomputer group of Motorola, Inc. Mr. Kuhl received a B.S. in electrical
engineering from Pennsylvania State University and a M.B.A. from the University
of Rochester.
Betsy A. Lange has served as the Company's Vice President, Finance and
Chief Financial Officer since July 1993. Ms. Lange joined the Company as an
accounting manager in December 1987 and became its controller in May 1991. Prior
to that time, Ms. Lange served in various accounting positions for five years at
Avantek, Inc., a manufacturer of microwave components. Ms. Lange received a B.S.
in business administration from California PolyTechnic State University (San
Luis Obispo) and a M.B.A. from Santa Clara University.
PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference from
the section captioned "Market and Stock Price Data" contained in the Company's
1997 Annual Report to Shareholders for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1997,
portions of which are filed as Exhibit 13.1 hereto (the "Annual Report to
Shareholders").
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to page
16 of the Annual Report to Shareholders.
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to page
19 of the Annual Report to Shareholders.
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to page
25 of the Annual Report to Shareholders.
ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
Not applicable.
-25-
PART III
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT
The information required by this item concerning the Company's directors is
incorporated by reference from the section captioned "Election of Directors"
contained in the Company's Proxy Statement related to the Annual Meeting of
Shareholders to be held November 7, 1997, to be filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days of the end of the Company's
fiscal year pursuant to General Instruction G(3) of Form 10-K (the "Proxy
Statement"). The information required by this item concerning executive officers
is set forth in Part I of this Report. The information required by this item
concerning compliance with Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act is incorporated by
reference from the section captioned "Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership
Reporting Compliance" contained in the Proxy Statement.
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference from the
section captioned "Executive Compensation and Other Matters" contained in the
Proxy Statement.
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference from the
section captioned "Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and
Management" contained in the Proxy Statement.
ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference from the
sections captioned "Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation"
and "Certain Transactions" contained in the Proxy Statement.
PART IV
ITEM 14. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES AND REPORTS ON FORM 8-K.
(a)(1) Financial Statements
The following financial statements are incorporated by
reference in Item 8 of this Report:
Independent Auditors' Report
Consolidated Balance Sheets at June 30, 1997 and 1996
Consolidated Statements of Income for the years ended June 30,
1997, 1996 and 1995
Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity for the years
ended June 30, 1997, 1996 and 1995
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended June
30, 1997, 1996 and 1995
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
(a)(2) Financial Statement Schedules
-26-
II - Valuation and Qualifying Accounts
Additional schedules are not required under the related
schedule instructions or are inapplicable, and therefore have been omitted.
(a)(3) Exhibits
3.1(1) Restated Articles of Incorporation of the
Registrant.
3.2(1) Bylaws of the Registrant, as amended to date.
10.1(1) 1983 Stock Incentive Program, and form of
Agreement thereto.
10.2 1993 Stock Plan as amended, and form of
agreement thereto.
10.3 1995 Employee Stock Purchase Plan as amended, and
form of agreements thereto.
10.4 1995 Director Option Plan as amended, and
form of agreement thereto.
10.5(1) Form of Indemnification Agreement between the
Registrant and its officers and directors.
10.6.1(1) Lease Agreement between the Registrant and
Technology Associates I dated July 18, 1986, as
amended.
10.6.2(1) Office Building Lease between Registrant and
Puente Hills Business Center II dated May 20,
1993, as amended.
10.6.3(1) Standard Office Lease - Gross between SILMA
Incorporated and South Bay/Copley Joint Venture
dated November 11, 1992.
10.6.4 Fifth Amendment to Lease between Registrant and
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company dated as of
December 5, 1996.
10.7(1) Loan Payoff Plan dated August 3, 1993 between
Registrant and Charles Duncheon.
11.1 Statement regarding computation of per share
earnings.
13.1 Portions of Registrant's Annual Report to
Shareholders for the fiscal year ended June 30,
1997.
22.1(1) Subsidiaries of the Registrant.
23.1 Consent of Ernst & Young LLP.
24.1 Power of Attorney (See Page 28).
27.1 Financial Data Schedule.
- ------------------
1 Incorporated by reference to exhibits filed with Registrant's
Registration Statement on Form S- 1 (Reg. No. 33-98816) as declared
effective by the Commission on December 15, 1995.
(b) Reports on Form 8-K. The Company did not file any reports on
Form 8-K during the quarter ended June 30, 1997.
(c) Exhibits. See Item 14(a)(3) above.
(d) Financial Statement Schedules. See Item 14(a)(2) above.
-27-
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this Report to
be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
ADEPT TECHNOLOGY, INC.
By: /s/ Brian R. Carlisle
--------------------------------------------
Brian R. Carlisle
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief
Executive Officer
Date: September 26, 1997
POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature
appears below constitutes and appoints Brian R. Carlisle and Betsy A. Lange and
each of them, his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, each with
full power of substitution and resubstitution, to sign any and all amendments
(including post-effective amendments) to this Annual Report on Form 10-K and to
file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection
therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said
attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do
and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in
connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or
could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said
attorneys-in-fact and agents, or their substitute or substitutes, or any of
them, shall do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, this Report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of
the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated:
Signature Title Date
/s/ Brian R. Carlisle Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief September 26, 1997
- --------------------------------------- Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer)
(Brian R. Carlisle)
/s/ Besty A. Lange Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial September 26, 1997
- --------------------------------------- Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting
(Betsy A. Lange) Officer)
28
/s/ Bruce E. Shimano Vice President, Research and Development, September 26, 1997
- --------------------------------------- Secretary and Director
(Bruce E. Shimano)
/s/ Michael P. Kelly Director September 26, 1997
- ---------------------------------------
(Michael P. Kelly)
/s/ Cary R. Mock Director September 26, 1997
- ---------------------------------------
(Cary R. Mock)
/s/ John E. Pomeroy Director September 26, 1997
- ---------------------------------------
(John E. Pomeroy)
29