Datametrics, Cray to Make Supercomputer System

Datametrics Corp., the Chatsworth provider of computer equipment, said it has signed an agreement with Cray Research Inc. of Minnesota to produce a supercomputer system designed to withstand harsh conditions such as those found on a ship, submarine or airplane.

Under the two-year agreement, Cray will manufacture central processing units and components for high-powered computers worth about $250,000 each, and sell them to Rugged Digital Systems, a business unit of Datametrics. Rugged Digital Systems will provide tough, shock-resistant shells, connections and other equipment to make the devices hardy enough for use on an oil platform or steel mill.

The product, called the Cray R/EL94 supercomputer, will be sold by both companies. It will be ready for sale in the fourth quarter of this year. There are as yet no orders for the supercomputers, but Datametrics said it expects to sell them to the government for military uses and to oil-exploration and chemical companies.