WiseTek, a Cork-based company that specialises in the recycling and repurposing of used hardware, is targeting further growth in the United States after recording a massive jump in profits last year.
WiseTek was established by Seán Sheehan in 2007. It recorded a profit before tax of €612,959 for the 12 months ending October 31st, up 128 per cent compared to the €267,731 posted a year earlier. Gross profits increased from €8 million to €9.99 million.
The dramatic increase in profits comes after WiseTek previously reported a 44 per cent decline in pretax profits a year earlier due to expansion costs.
The Little Island-headquartered company, which also provides secure data elimination, employs 250 staff globally. It currently has operations in the US and Thailand as well as in Cork and Dublin.
Mr Sheehan told The Irish Times the company is firmly in expansion mode with plans to set up an office in Dubai to serve the Middle East. It also intends to to bolster its presence in the US.
The company established an office in Franklin, Massachusetts in 2012 and also now has one in Austin, Texas. Mr Sheehan said WiseTek is looking at opening a location in Sacramento shortly to service the West Coast. It also expects to announce its first acquisitions in the US soon.
Revenue growth
Mr Sheehan said the company has grown revenues by 30 per cent per annum over the last two years and projected similar growth for the next 12 months.
WiseTek specialises in "reverse logistics", the process by which redundant computer and electronic equipment is either sold or broken down into parts and its valuable constituents recovered. Its clients include tech giants such as Dell EMC and McAfee. In recent years, the company has expanded from working primarily with Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) to serving data centres.
Last October, WiseTek opened its first secure operations facility close to the M50 to service the rapidly expanding local data centre sector.
Mr Sheehan said with companies in the space typically refreshing their IT hardware every three years, there were plenty of opportunities.
He also said the company was weighing up moving into recycling and repurposing of smaller tech devices.
“We are finding that a lot of companies are looking for a global supplier who can cover everything in terms of recycling and repurposing of technology. Given this we’re looking at being able to provide a service to take back smaller devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones as well as the bigger technology,” Mr Sheehan added.
WiseTek's executive board includes Intel's former Irish boss Jim O'Hara, ex-EMC senior vice-president Dick Lehane and former Bord Gáis chief executive John Mullins.
The company was recently named one of the best managed companies in Ireland by Deloitte for the second year in a row. Mr Sheehan is also a former EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist.
