Microwave Circuit Technology, 45 Central Dr, Farmingdale, NY 11735, US

PICS' founder, Kevin F. Rich, first entered the field of computer-control systems with the Titan Missile Program in 1968. He later moved on to more demanding positions with Westinghouse, Van Dyk Research and Theta Engineering. In 1983, Kevin was one of a three-man team tasked by Westinghouse to form an industrial instrumentation service company utilizing its talent pool from the nuclear industry. By 1989, the company, WISCO, employed a staff of more than 40 technicians and engineers servicing all aspects of instrumentation and industrial computing, as well as the developing networking industry. When Westinghouse shifted focus to high-volume service contracts, Kevin left to form PICS. While with Shell Oil Company, Matt Kwiecinski teamed with Kevin in 1990 to implement the first Marine Vapor Recovery System operational on the East Coast. This was a 2-year, multifaceted project involving PC supervision of a PLC (AB-2)-controlled system. After leaving Shell, Matt joined PICS. As partner, he brings a solid background in Allen-Bradley PLC and systems integration to the company.