Northgate Information Solutions

Northgate Information Solutions

Industry	Human resources & payroll software and services. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts subsidiary.
Founded	1969
Area served	Worldwide, based in the United Kingdom.
Key people	Adel Al-Saleh (Group CEO)
Products	Former computer manufacturer
Number of employees	8500
Website	www.northgate-is.com

Northgate Information Solutions Limited (Northgate) is the holding company of NGA Human Resources, a provider of specialist software and outsourcing services for human resources (HR) and payroll, based in the United Kingdom.

It has more than 8,500 staff in 35 countries. Following the sale of two business divisions, Northgate has only one division: NGA Human Resources. Specialising in services to the Public Sector, Northgate Public Services was acquired by Cinven in December 2014. Northgate Managed Services, specialising in managed information technology services to the UK mid-market, was acquired by Capita in February 2013.

The company was founded as CMC, or Computer Machinery Company Limited, on 18 September 1969 by Ray Parry. They were originally distributors and subsequently manufacturers of key to disk computer systems made by the US-based Computer Machinery Corporation. The CMC key to disk systems were used by companies and government departments for data capture. In 1976, CMC developed a bit-slice based intelligent terminal—the P99—which it used both as a front end processor to the key to disk systems and as a terminal in its own right. It then evolved the CMC P99 into the P141—a true front-end processor, which it used to implement a new data capture system call Sovereign. This was used in manufacturing companies such as Rolls-Royce plc, British Steel Corporation and various government departments including providing data capture for the DHSS at Newcastle upon Tyne. It later evolved into the M8000 system, based on Intel-processor-based systems.

In 1976, CMC merged with Microdata Corporation, a California-based computer company, whose 1973-released Reality operating and database environment product CMC was also distributing. The companies continued to use separate trading names in their respective regions until 1981. The Reality name was given to Microdata's computer system and the operating system—a version of the Pick operating system. At the time, Microdata owned rights to the Pick Operating system in parallel with Dick Pick – who had developed it with Microdata. CMC Leasing Limited (the official trading name) then changed its name to Microdata UK limited, aka MUK. The company then started UK manufacture of the Reality range of computer systems in its manufacturing factory in Maxted Road, Hemel Hempstead. Microdata was purchased by McDonnell Douglas Corporation in 1985 and the company was re-branded as McDonnell Douglas Information Systems Limited (MDIS).