Adtech leader Weldon retires
By John Duchemin
Advertiser Staff Writer
Kathryn Weldon, chief operating officer of Adtech Inc., retired yesterday from the company she helped found, bringing to a close the Weldon family's participation in the now-struggling communications test equipment manufacturer.
Advertiser library photo
Weldon's departure came five days after Adtech announced the layoff of 30 employees, about 10 percent of its work force.
Adtech's Kathryn Weldon had helped run the company since her husband founded it in 1967. She retired yesterday, ending her family's involvement with the business.
Adtech has been hit this year by bad news from the telecommunications sector, particularly the layoffs and losses that have hit major clients including Cisco, Nortel and Lucent.
Tareq Hoque, Weldon's son-in-law, resigned July 11, saying he disagreed with the company's cost-cutting plans.
Weldon, 61, had helped run Adtech since husband Ned and two other University of Hawai'i professors founded it in 1967. Adtech became a world leader in communications test equipment in the mid-1990s. The Weldons sold the company to Spirent PLC, a British conglomerate, in 1997 for $51 million, plus up to $25 million in incentives.
The Weldons have gradually parted ways with their company. Ned Weldon retired in 1999, paving the way for Hoque to become president. Kathryn had been planning to retire.
