Suburban Propane awards Progress Software and Apprise Software million dollar contract to enhance customer information system

Business Wire, Nov 26, 1996

BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 26, 1996--Progress Software Corporation (NASDAQ: PRGS) today announced that Suburban Propane (NYSE: SPH), a leading, full-service propane gas supplier based in the U.S., has selected PROGRESS(R) Version 8.0 and Apprise(TM) Accounts Receivable Module a POWERED BY PROGRESS(TM) application to develop and deploy a flexible, scalable and easy-to-use interface for its comprehensive customer information system. The value of the contract is estimated at $1.2 million.

"Our expansion requires us to deliver superior customer service, including tracking and anticipating our customers'future service and billing needs. Using PROGRESS 8.0 and Apprise Software' Accounts Receivable Module, we expect to achieve significant productivity gains," said Steven Wells, vice president of information systems for Suburban Propane of Whippany, New Jersey.

Suburban Propane will employ PROGRESS Version 8.0, which includes the PROGRESS 4GL, a complete, high level, object-based application development language for prototyping, developing and modifying solutions quickly. Progress Software will also supply consulting services. Apprise Software will provide its Accounts Receivable Module and the underlying architecture, including workflow management, security and a standard look-and-feel for the software development.

According to Wells, "Progress Software was selected because the company understands the important role that customer service plays at Suburban and in our industry, while offering a flexible solution that facilitates our growth. Its powerful object-based application development environment and easy-to-use RDBMS will help expedite rapid development and deployment on more than 300 servers, supporting 1,600 users. The Accounts Receivable module of Apprise(TM) Financials will be integral to the system. Its intuitive user interface will provide the standard look-and-feel throughout the project."

Jennifer Bergantino, vice president of marketing and strategic planning at Progress Software said, "Today's announcement is a prime example of senior managers seeking a sound return from their technology investments. They see IT as a long-term investment in people and resources, but they also expect results to start immediately." Bergantino added, "Our solution is two-fold: an attractive `build, buy or both' model that lets developers choose the best approach for their particular development and deployment needs and a flexible architecture that allows Suburban Propane to quickly adapt to changing business needs."

Jeff Broadhurst, president of Apprise Software, stated, "The Apprise Financials architecture and PROGRESS Version 8 are an effective base for internal software development. Companies will drastically cut time-to-deployment and also greatly increase the probability of success for their projects by using Apprise(TM) Architecture." Broadhurst continued, "By interfacing Apprise Financials with the remaining SAP R/3 applications, Suburban Propane has added tremendous scalability and the ability to distribute the customer service application to more than 350 customer service centers."

About Progress Software Corporation

Progress Software Corporation (NASDAQ: PRGS), headquartered in Bedford, Mass., is a leading supplier of application development technology and support services to business, government and industry worldwide. The company's new WebSpeed(TM) product enables the rapid development and deployment of robust business applications so that customers, partners and vendors can access corporate databases to conduct Internet- or intranet-based business transactions. Progress Software employs more than 1,100 professionals in nearly 60 offices across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America. With an established presence in 65 countries, Progress Software has shipped more than 325,000 licenses worldwide.

More than 2,300 Application Partners (APs) use Progress Software products to build and deploy applications across a broad spectrum of platforms host, client/server and Internet. These APs sold more than $1.5 billion worth of PROGRESS-based applications globally in 1995.

About Apprise Software, Inc.

Apprise Software, Inc., develops, markets and supports a high-performance, cross-platform, open database, client/server suite of software applications. These applications allow medium-to-large-sized enterprises to rapidly and cost-effectively implement current technologies.

About Suburban Propane

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P., is a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey, Suburban has been in the customer service business since 1928 and is the nation's third largest propane gas marketer. The Company serves more than 700,000 active residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers through more than 350 customer service centers in more than 40 states. -0-

PROGRESS is a registered trademark of Progress Software Corporation. POWERED BY PROGRESS and WebSpeed are trademarks of Progress Software Corporation. All other products and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.