HEREFORD, ENGLAND - As of October 31, 2010, DHS Technologies LLC’s international subsidiary, formerly known as MilSys (UK) Ltd, will be operating under the new name of DHS Systems International.
The renaming comes at a time when DHS Technologies is expanding its involvement in markets around the world, including those in South America, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The company says that the new name is part of a wider restructuring taking place to raise customer awareness and increase efficiency of the international division of DHS Technologies.
“Customers used to hear the name MilSys and did not understand that we were more than a small subsidiary located in Hereford, England,” says Andrew Cowling, managing director of DHS Systems International. “Now, people see and hear our name and understand that we are a global company that is ready to serve customers around the world, and not just those in a certain region or country.”
DHS first acquired MilSys (UK) Ltd in 2004 to serve as a platform to serve the UK MoD and reach customers located outside of the United States. Though MilSys and the company’s U.S. subsidiary, DHS Systems LLC initially worked fairly independently of one another, it quickly became clear that better cooperation between the two entities was needed.
“In the past, we truly were operating as two entirely separate companies, which meant that we were using two different sets of processes and often doing duplicate work. We knew it was time to improve transatlantic cooperation,” says Cowling.
Since being named managing director late last year, Cowling and his team have worked closely with employees in the United States to create a more unified, global corporation than seen in the past. He says that today, DHS Systems International has come to have three major focuses – business development and marketing, project delivery and maintenance support.
“Our focus has been on improving how we serve the customer in all senses of the word. We are now working more closely with [Vice President of Business Development] Jeff Jackson to ensure that we have enough man power and resources for all of the international shows we attend each year,” he says.
“We are also working together to do a better job at delivering our product to the customer in the shortest amount of time possible, training the customer and providing long-term logistical support.”
Though the ongoing restructuring has already improved business procedures across the Atlantic, Cowling says that there are inevitable challenges the company will still continue to face. For one thing, DHS Systems International, which is located more than 3,000 miles away from DHS Technologies’ headquarters in New York, will continue to have to work with employees operating at least five hours behind them while dealing with customers operating as much as five hours ahead of them.
“The time difference has always been and will continue to be an obstacle,” he says. “By the time most employees in America are arriving to work, our work day is half completed and for customers in Asia, the working day is over.”
The company also faces the wide array of business practices found in different cultures around the world.
“Unlike in the United States domestic market, in the international market we cannot go to another nation’s garrison or camp and speak directly with personnel. Instead, we must know a country’s procurement procedures and work with their Ministry of Defense to complete a sale, which can be a fairly complex and lengthy process,” explains Cowling.
“And at the same time, we must make sure that we are complying with that country’s business laws, as well as business laws in the U.K. and the U.S.”
Despite such obstacles, Cowling says that DHS Systems International is already looking to expand sales in markets around the world, while improving upon existing products and creating new ones.
“There are many countries that are thriving despite the current economic climate who have a real need for the types of products we offer. I think there are definitely areas in which our products have yet to meet their full potential,” he says.
The company is currently working with engineers in the U.S. to develop a line of trailers that meet European Union (EU) regulations, as well as with DHS Systems’ Controller John Bohrman to better streamline their procedures.
Cowling insists that these and other initiatives will continue to benefit DHS Technologies and its worldwide customer base.
“This marks a new period in how we’re going to handle international sales. All of us are working together to make sure that we are working in the most efficient way possible to get customers what they need, regardless of where they are in the world.”