SCIENCE / TECHNOLOGY

AST in the Mideast: In the wake of the Persian Gulf War, AST Research Inc., the Irvine computer maker, is pressing ahead with its plans to open a regional sales subsidiary in Dubai, one of the United Arab Emirates.

The subsidiary’s sales office and warehouse will open in April as originally scheduled before the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, said Thomas Yuen, the company’s co-chairman and chief operating officer.

AST has already booked several large orders in the Middle East as a result of its efforts, including a $1-million sale to Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Bank. AST waited until after the war to announce the sales.

“There’s a lot of destruction in Kuwait and the area, and practically it will create opportunities for companies, especially with the high visibility given to high-tech equipment,” Yuen said. “Unfortunately, this kind of opportunity is based on other people’s sufferings. But it is still a business opportunity.

Yuen said the company considered delaying the opening of the subsidiary if the war had continued but finally decided to go forward with the move as part of its global expansion.

“This region is often overlooked,” he noted. “The military support of Kuwait will heighten respect for the United States in the affluent countries, and that will create opportunity.”