CDS Corporate Profile

Commercial Data Systems, Inc. began operations in 1986 as a UNIX systems integrator and reseller in Honolulu, HI. Over the last 20 years has since grown into one of the top enterprise-level computer integrators and resellers in the United States. With corporate headquarters still in Honolulu, CDS also now conducts operations from a regional headquarters in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as well as through satellite offices in California, Colorado, Florida, Texas, and Washington D.C. (including surrounding belt areas). CDS has over 20 years experience and has installed computing solutions, servers and networks throughout the United States and worldwide. Commercial Data Systems differentiates itself from other resellers by offering a complete range of consulting, engineering, training, and support services. CDS strives to offer ‘complete’ technology solutions by working with customers from the inception and design of a project through procurement, installation, testing, and employee training. This gives the customer a single point of contact and responsibility, and ensures that the customer receives the correct, working solution on the first attempt. Also, because CDS is not a vendor or an arm of a vendor, it maintains a level of impartiality that direct vendors cannot claim. This makes CDS uniquely suited to recommend the best solution available for a given customer need.

Federal Procurement

CDS is especially proud of its close relations with federal customers, making every effort to ease the procurement process for defense and government offices. CDS enables customers to put all IT hardware, software, and services on one quote. As an 8(a), SBA HUBZone Certified business, CDS helps government customers meet certain purchasing requirements. And CDS possesses a growing array of contract vehicles, including GSA and IDIQ schedules, CMAS, CISV, and TXMAS, to expedite procurement.

Engineering Expertise

CDS prides itself on maintaining a corps of skilled engineers trained in the latest hardware and software from major IT vendors. This valuable knowledge resource is available to our customers for a wide range of services, including simple hardware integration, pre-installation consulting, on-site installation, and long-term on-site deployment.

System and Contract Support

CDS support services can be broken down into support contract management and engineering support. Hardware support must be provided by the vendors directly, but CDS can streamline this process for everyone involved by offering contract management services in addition to the vendor support contracts. This allows the customer to unify all hardware support for a given vendor under one blanket agreement, instead of managing all contract payments and renewals on a per-machine basis. CDS also offers engineering support as an extension of the ‘complete’ solution model, assisting the customer with installation and testing of a given solution.

Education and Training

CDS strives to provide customer staff with any necessary training and has state-of-the-art training centers to meet that end. These facilities can hold classes for professionals who wish to keep their skills up to date. In addition, CDS training facilities are available for specialized sessions in the event that a customer’s IT staff needs to be trained for a new solution. CDS keeps certified instructors on staff and can provide vendor instructors as well. The centers are equipped with all the hardware needed for hands-on training.

The CDS Story

Founded in 1986 by Mark Wong, David Castro, Guy Merola and John Ishikawa, Commercial Data Systems initially provided UNIX hardware and integration services in Honolulu and in various worldwide locations over the next decade. This venture took a sharp turn in the late 1990s, when CDS forged strong partnerships with information technology vendors like Sun Microsystems, Cisco, and IBM. This, coupled with a revitalized sales force, resulted in phenomenal revenue growth that was invested in boosting CDS’ ability to serve the federal marketplace. This presence was established by the turn of the century, a move which would prove fortuitous in the ensuing years. While other resellers were destroyed by the tech economy bust, CDS continued to grow, and now looks forward to a resurging IT market.

The Future of CDS

Today CDS continues with its formula for success, maintaining an approximate ratio of $1M revenue per employee. CDS fills an important niche with its combination of pricing and services and continues to expand as a result. CDS opened a new, much larger regional headquarters in Albuquerque in April of 2004, and added a new satellite office in the Washington, D.C. area in December of that year. This growth is expected to continue as CDS accumulates satisfied customers in the federal and commercial markets.

CDS also continues to identify and adapt to emerging trends in information technology. Recognizing the growing importance of secure operating systems in a field increasingly beset by virus and hacker attacks, CDS has taken the initiative to adopt the Trusted Computing Model. This model emphasizes security at the operating system level as the basis for maintaining enterprise integrity and reducing total cost of ownership. CDS now has more engineers certified in trusted operating systems than any other reseller, and remains committed to providing highly secure solutions for its customers.