highgrove was founded in 1991. We've been on IBM i since the platform launched. The technology has changed; the approach hasn't.
Highgrove Computer Services Limited was founded in 1991 by Alan Ward, formerly IT Manager at Hammonds Furniture. The company was built on IBM i expertise from the outset — at a time when the platform was new and most IT companies hadn't yet formed a view on it.
Tony Cantrill BSc(Hons) MBCS CITP CEng joined in January 1998, bringing a decade of manufacturing IT leadership from Triumph Motorcycles, where he scaled IT from 25 to 600+ staff across the UK, France, Germany and the USA.
highgrove has operated continuously since 1991 — through the dot-com boom, the rise of cloud, the smartphone era, and now the AI transition. The depth of platform knowledge built over that period is the foundation of every engagement.
Tony attends the AS/400 launch at the NEC, Birmingham. The platform that will define highgrove's core specialism.
Highgrove Computer Services Limited founded by Alan Ward, former IT Manager at Hammonds Furniture.
Tony Cantrill joins highgrove from Triumph Motorcycles, bringing Mangrove ERP knowledge and manufacturing IT depth.
AS/400 → iSeries → System i. highgrove evolves with every generation — cloud connectivity, web integration, modern tooling.
IBM renames the platform IBM i. highgrove has now supported it through four name changes and multiple hardware generations.
highgrove begins active development of AI capability — first proposals in market. Practical, operational, integration-led.
daisy, highgrove's managed AI receptionist, launches on the highgrove main number. The frontier, as always.