John, Arthur & David, the original directors, founded J.A.D in November 1976. The specialist Staff of Rockwell International formed J.A.D, when the company decided to cease commercial computer operations in the UK. As the world of electronics was rapidly changing, JAD began to supply electronic calculators and very early examples of computer systems. We sold NORTHSTAR HORIZON which had an innovative 5100 bus which allowed different types of cards, ie memory and disk controllers to be inserted.
After a time at an office in Mutley Plain, JAD moved to a shop in Market Avenue selling Texas Instrument’s home computers and calculators, as well as the Commodore VIC20 and later the popular BBC Micro.
JAD were early adopters of equipment from companies like Commodore and Apple, we enhanced these systems by providing customised applications to many small businesses throughout the South West. JAD had a small team of programmers who wrote ‘code’ in BASIC, a programmable interface developed by Bill Gates and Paul Allen.
When IBM decided to launch the IBM PC in 1982, JAD were one of the first to become authorised to sell this new and pioneering range of computer systems. The earliest versions of the IBM PC came with a cassette disk interface for storing data to cassette tape, the 160kb and later the 320kb were popular amongst business users.
As ‘personal computers’ began to reach into the world of the mainframe and it became more obvious about the ‘power’ of these systems, more and more software became available. Early offerings included Visi Calc, Norbstar and Dataease. These programs operated independently and it took years for integrated suites of programs to appear.
AutoCAD was the first CAD program sold by JAD. This program had enormous system requirements at the time; compared to our PCs and laptops today the requirements were tiny. As the sophistication and power of the later systems developed along with the Intel Chip 80286, 80386 and the 80486, more and more companies turned to these systems and their applications.
Soon the personal computer was making a real impact on the traditional Desktop Publishing (DP) departments, users were no longer happy to submit requests, only to get an answer a few days later, the efficiency of the office was in a new era. The DP department had to embrace the change, as did the roles of accountants and secretaries. Desktop Publishing became the in-vogue application. JAD also saw the first monitors capable of displaying an A4 page at actual size. Previous monitors were often green screen and character based, standard applications at the time didn’t show on-screen what would print, this all came much later.
The benefits of computer word-processing superseded the electronic typewriter and JAD ran many training courses to explain and show how to use and adapt these new systems into the workplace.
Further developments saw the arrival of desktop laser printers by Canon and Hewlett Packard. The improvements in quality and speed over the existing 24 pin dot matrix or the “woodpecker” daisy wheel were staggering at the time.
IBM proved to be a calming influence on the marketplace but the arrival of the initial versions of the Microsoft Windows environment really helped to standardise systems making them easier to use. During the 90’s computer systems became faster, cheaper and easier to use, enabling the flexibility of using computers at home for various domestic and leisure purposes.
Training became a major activity for JAD and although the amount of training now required has perhaps reduced with the next generation of users, machines and software, training is still required to get the best out of any system.
During the 80s and early 90s, JAD saw an explosion of IT companies, we also saw many national companies opening offices across the UK including the South West, due to the advances in technology and the booming economy.
By 1988, JAD was one of the longest-established and most broadly based computing companies in the South West. Having grown up through the computer revolution, JAD acquired much expertise across a broad spectrum. This was channelled towards providing quality solutions to medium and large organisations and JAD had, and still has, many well-known and respected organisations on its portfolio of clients.
In 1991 J.A.D changed it’s name to JAD Integrated Services to reflect the changing developments in IT and the range of services provided by the company. JAD had now combined their existing expertise with a new range of operations, providing an even wider selection of services and products to cater for computer users on a local basis. In the South West there were many medium and large companies who required the security of professional advice and ongoing support services, as is still the case today. It is here that JAD has built its excellent reputation. Many of our clients have dealt with us for many years and our employee turnaround is very low thanks to the proactive and innovative attitude of JAD, enabling long term client relationships with a sales and technical team that really care about our clients.
With new frontiers always opening up, who could have predicted the growth of home computing and the internet. Now technology is converging, people expect to be able to get their email whilst on the move, messaging is bringing a new level of communication and productivity.
In 1994, following a merger with Logical One, a successful local IT company,
JAD Logic was founded. The merger brought Dennis Hicks onto JAD’s board of directors. On retirement of the preceding directors, Dennis is now the sole director of the JAD group.
Early 2000 saw the rise of broadband across the South West, bringing with it the need for better network infrastructures and continuous access to the internet.
In 2005, JAD developed a new cabling division to fulfil the need for expanding networks, telephone infrastructures and ip technologies. JAD was also recognised as one of the top 5 Storage Specialists in the UK by Channel Business Magazine.
Now, more then 30 years on, JAD still has an outstanding reputation. We have experienced both the highs and the lows of the IT industry and the UK’s economy, with our experienced and well-established team successfully riding the waves. The evolution of the industry, and it’s technology, has ironically been the downfall of many IT companies in the South West, where JAD has always remained the strongest and longest established IT company in the area. Whilst supporting many major organisations within the region we also supply and procure for many organisations across the UK including in the City of London.
JAD are proud to have watched their clients grow with the latest technology, our support has helped to keep them ahead of their competitors. 30 years also brings economic and business skills that are rare in today’s corporate climate, JAD understands the real need for value and for strategic thinking, providing the ability for growth when the company is ready for expansion, and not before.
Microsoft may have been founded the year before JAD but taking over the world was never JAD’s intention. Our business function is to provide a dedicated service, it is the streamlined structure of our business that gives us our strength. We have seen IT as it has evolved from the birth of UNIX, the development of MS-DOS, the BBC Micro, the Apple I, along with the writing of the classic, but now primitive, game Pac-man. We lived through the time before DVDs, before CDs and even before High Density floppy disks. All of today’s technology has grown from principles established over 20 years ago. We have seen the IT triumphs, and failures, during the development of the IT market we take so much for granted today. Our knowledge of IT is priceless and thanks to one-to-one relationships with our clients, they are tremendously proud to work with us.
As a recognised UK IT reseller and a leading storage specialist, JAD is still one step ahead in the IT industry. Holding strong relationships with many leading brands we bring our client the latest technology, bringing their business efficiently through to the next technological era.
Our history
