Editing Wang Laboratories (section)

{{Short description|American computer company}}
{{Essay|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox company
| name          = Wang Laboratories, Inc.
| image         = File:Cross Point Towers; northeast side; Lowell, MA; 2011-09-11.JPG
| image_caption = Former Wang headquarters in [[Lowell, Massachusetts]]
| logo          = Wang Laboratories wordmark.svg
| type          = [[Public company|Public]]
| fate          = Acquired by [[Getronics]]
| foundation    = [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]], [[United States|US]] (1951)
| location      = [[Tewksbury, Massachusetts]], [[United States|US]] (1963–1976)<br />[[Lowell, Massachusetts]], [[United States|US]] (1976–1995)<br />[[Billerica, Massachusetts]] (1995-1999)
| key_people    = [[An Wang]] (founder)
| industry      = [[Computer hardware]]
| products      = [[Word processor]]s, [[minicomputer]]s, [[microcomputer]]s
| revenue       = $3&nbsp;billion (1980s, peak)
| num_employees = 33,000
| num_employees_year = 1980s
}}
'''Wang Laboratories, Inc.''', was an American computer company founded in 1951 by [[An Wang]] and G. Y. Chu.<ref name=AmStockX.Wang/> The company was successively headquartered in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]] (1954–1963), [[Tewksbury, Massachusetts]] (1963–1976), [[Lowell, Massachusetts]] (1976–1995), and finally [[Billerica, Massachusetts]]. At its peak in the 1980s, Wang Laboratories had annual revenues of [[US$]]3 billion and employed over 33,000 people. It was one of the leading companies during the time of the [[Massachusetts Miracle]].<ref name="futureboston1">{{cite web|url=http://www.futureboston.org/howell.htm |title= Jim Howell on Boston's Economic Development |website=Future Boston |access-date=February 14, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304093146/http://www.futureboston.org/howell.htm |archive-date=March 4, 2016 }}</ref>

The company was directed by An Wang, who was described as an "indispensable leader" and played a personal role in setting business and product strategy until his death in 1990. The company went through transitions between different product lines,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.limitsofstrategy.com/chapters/chapter7.html |title=The Limits of Strategy: Chapter 7 - Defeated in Succession |website=Limitsofstrategy.com |access-date=2016-05-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304040755/http://www.limitsofstrategy.com/chapters/chapter7.html |archive-date=2016-03-04 |url-status=dead }}</ref> beginning with typesetters, calculators, and word processors, then adding computers, copiers, and laser printers.<ref name=WANG.NYT1978>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]
   |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/06/archives/wang-labs-healthy-survivor-intelligent-printer-is-set-machine.html
   |title=Wang Labs: Healthy Survivor
   |url-access=subscription
   |author=Peter J. Schuyten  |date=December 6, 1978}}</ref>

Wang Laboratories filed for bankruptcy protection in August 1992.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/19/business/wang-files-for-bankruptcy-5000-jobs-to-be-cut.html |title= Wang Files for Bankruptcy; 5,000 Jobs to Be Cut |author=Adam Bryant |date=August 19, 1992 |url-access=limited |work=New York Times |access-date=August 20, 2014}}</ref> After emerging from bankruptcy, the company changed its name to '''Wang Global'''. It was acquired by [[Getronics]] of the Netherlands in 1999, becoming Getronics North America, then was sold to [[KPN]] in 2007 and [[CompuCom]] in 2008.