Sierra Wireless (TSX: SW)(NASDAQ: SWIR) manufactures cellular wireless devices and provides services in the wireless communications and information technology industry. It enables connectivity for Internet of Things (IoT) solutions through cellular, and short range wireless technologies. These technologies include 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, cellular and wireless local area network technologies such as Bluetooth.
The company provides integrated device-to-cloud IoT solutions that are comprised of Sierra’s recurring connectivity services, cloud platform, and high-speed embedded cellular modules and gateways. Enterprises, industrial companies, and original equipment manufacturer (OEMs) worldwide rely on Sierra’s expertise to deliver fully integrated IoT solutions to reduce complexity, gather intelligent edge data, and enable connected IoT services.
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Comprehensive product portfolio
With sales and engineering located in offices around the world, Sierra offers a comprehensive portfolio of embedded modules and gateways, seamlessly integrated with the company’s cloud platform and connectivity services. Sierra’s integrated solutions are developed to be simple, scalable and secure, enabling customers to get connected products and services to market faster. The company’s devices are currently operating on more than 600 networks globally and Sierra has shipped more than 191 million connected devices worldwide.
The company’s IoT devices and integrated solutions are used by a variety of customers across numerous market segments and many use cases. Market segments that it serves include industrial, utility, energy, manufacturing, enterprise networking, clean technology, field services, residential, and healthcare.
Excellent reputation
Sierra sells products both directly and through indirect channels including OEMs, distributors, value-added resellers , and mobile network operators. The company has built sales and distribution teams to support the company’s international business.
Sierra has built a reputation in the wireless industry for creating state-of-the-art, high quality products and services and for bringing it to market within aggressive time frames. The company’s global product development teams of approximately 472 full-time employees are located in British Columbia, France, Georgia and Taiwan. These teams are skilled in the areas of radio design, hardware design, embedded software design cloud-based application development, and cellular network design.
Extensive experience
The product development teams include leaders with extensive experience. The company’s goal is to develop complete, thoroughly validated, high quality products and solutions that are closely managed throughout the entire life cycle. As part of this approach, individuals from Sierra’s product development group form product-specific teams with staff from other functional areas, including research and development, product management, marketing, operations, technical support, and quality.
Concepts and prototypes are validated by working with lead customers, channel partners, and industry consultants. From time to time, projects are outsourced to third parties, who provide product development leverage for Sierra’s in-house development teams.
Ongoing structural changes
To accelerate Sierra’s transformation to a fully-integrated device-to-cloud IoT solutions company, Sierra launched certain strategic and organizational structure changes in late 2018. Since then, the company has designed and commenced implementation of a variety of cost reduction initiatives broadly across Sierra, including moving certain positions to lower cost geographies, outsourcing a variety of operations functions, exiting numerous facilities, as well as the renegotiation of certain supplier contracts. These structural changes should serve shareholders well.
