History (1989): IBM Working on Automatic 3480 Tape Cartridge Library With Haushahn

To try to counter StorageTek’s success with its ACS 4400 model, IBM is working on an automatic 3480 cartridge library with Haushahn GmbH (Stuttgart, West Germany).

The final product will probably not be available before 1990.

Unlike StorageTek’s rotating system, IBM’s product is based on a linear system with a robotic arm supplied by IBM.

Some contacts had been made, several months ago, with another German company, Grau Datentechnik GmbH (Böhmenkirch, West Germany) concerning a 15,000 3480 cartridge library named ABBA.

This article is an abstract of news published on the former paper version of Computer Data Storage Newsletter on issue ≠21, published on October 1989.