Seattle Business identified ten companies in Washington that seem positioned to break out and eventually become tomorrow’s titans. The selections were guided by fundamentals:
- Mid-cap companies with valuations of approximately $2 billion
- Stable management
- Corporate history
- Well positioned
- A strong national or international presence.
Eastern Washington’s Itron was one of the ten companies highlighted:
Liberty Lake in Eastern Washington may not be an obvious headquarters site for a company with global reach. Itron’s CFO Steve Helmbrecht admits as much, that when talking to prospective customers, “Sometimes I have to point out Spokane on the map.” But the maker of digital smart-grid systems for electricity and water is riding a growing worldwide appetite for better resource management.
This shift to a global strategy is still relatively new to the 35-year-old company, driven by its more recent focus on metering systems in only the last eight years. Itron’s systems use computer networks to provide ongoing feedback and analysis, reduce waste and make sure that electricity or water are routed to where they are needed at the right times. Helmbrecht notes that the shift has also pushed the company to evolve into a comprehensive provider of solutions and services, rather than just a technology vendor.
Read more here: Gianni Truzzi, Seattle Business, January 2013.