TORONTO, – Avanti Computer Systems Limited, a leading provider of Print MIS, Web-to-Print and digital print workflow software, today announced that it has donated $75, 000 to the University of Waterloo.
 
The three owners of Avanti, Patrick Bolan, Stephen McWilliam and Peter Funnell, are all University of Waterloo graduates.  After graduation, they remained friends, while pursuing different career paths in different geographies. After years of talking about working together, they formed a business partnership and purchased Toronto-based Avanti in 2004. They have since tripled the size of the company and continue to grow, as Avanti expands globally.
 
"The University of Waterloo played such an important role in both our professional development and in bringing the three of us together, that we wanted to give something back," says Patrick Bolan, Avanti's President and CEO.
 
"What a thrill, for me personally, to come back to see a campus with all the familiar icons from my time at Waterloo, integrated with all of the new facilities," says Stephen McWilliam, EVP at Avanti, after visiting the campus for the first time in many years. "Memories of my days as both a student and Residence Don came flooding back!"
 
"Many of Avanti's long-term and new employees are University of Waterloo graduates. They have played, and continue to play, a vital role in our product innovation," says Peter Funnell, Avanti's CFO. "We are excited to be supporting the University of Waterloo and we look forward to continuing to tap into both the co-op program and graduates for new Avanti team members to support our growth."
 
"What a pleasure it was to meet with the Avanti senior management team. I enjoyed hearing stories of their time together at Waterloo and how that has translated into such a successful business partnership. Their generosity towards the University is very much appreciated." says May Yan, Director for New Media Services at the University of Waterloo.