Bechtel, Webvan Use Cephren's Online Collaboration Service, ProjectNet, to Streamline Construction of Distribution Centers

Business Wire, April 7, 2000

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 7, 2000

Internet collaboration technology from Cephren Inc. is enabling one of the world's leading builders, Bechtel Corporation, to design and build online grocer Webvan's (Nasdaq:WBVN) nationwide network of highly automated distribution centers. Cephren's web-based collaboration service, ProjectNet(R), provides Bechtel's project teams -- i.e. contractors, architects, engineers, subcontractors and suppliers -- with the ability to share documents, collaborate and communicate in real-time. With ProjectNet, documents, including computer-aided design (CAD) drawings, are being shared instantaneously among the many firms involved in building each Webvan distribution center, eliminating the expense and confusion of delivering paper documents overnight.

"The difference between using ProjectNet and traditional offline tools can be compared to the real time savings of e-mail versus postal mail," said Tim Horst, program construction manager for Bechtel's Webvan distribution centers project. "The ability to send out and respond to information requests within a matter of hours while tracking each response significantly reduces construction delays and crew down-time."

Webvan's distribution center project involves the construction of 26 distribution centers across the United States including locations such as Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Philadelphia and Seattle. The ability for Bechtel project headquarters to coordinate and communicate effectively with all the disparate project teams is crucial, particularly since hundreds of drawings need to be shared for each Webvan project.

"Each location presents unique challenges with regard to terrain and building codes," said Brian Sedar, program business manager for Bechtel's Webvan distribution centers project. "Consequently, the designer in charge of producing the overall plans for the project must communicate quickly and simply with local architectural firms to ensure that each building meets building codes and that the design addresses local terrain issues. As a result, ProjectNet delivers significant value to Bechtel and Webvan long before ground is broken for the new buildings."

Even for users with limited computer experience, ProjectNet is easy to learn and works with any PC and Web browser. Cephren also offers on site training and support to project team members who may lack computer knowledge, thus providing additional value for builders and owners.

"Cephren ProjectNet is intuitive and straightforward," said Charles Sandvig, design manager for Bechtel's Webvan distribution centers project. "The true challenge is finding a system that responds to a wide variety of subcontractor's management and workflow processes. ProjectNet provides a flexible medium that accommodates a large subcontractor organization working daily with computers, as well as smaller operations that work in a fax and paper environment."

About Webvan

Webvan Group, Inc. is setting a new standard for Internet retailing, combining, for the first time, the convenience of online shopping with a personalized courier service that delivers products into customers' homes within a 30-minute window of their choosing. Through its Web site, www.webvan.com, Webvan offers a broad selection of quality products at competitive prices. The company's relentless focus on customer service, innovation, and value saves its customers time and money. Webvan's corporate headquarters are located in Foster City, CA.

About Bechtel

Bechtel is a premier engineering, construction, development, and management organization with a century of experience and about 40,000 employees worldwide. In 1998 Bechtel booked $13.3 billion in new work and worked off $12.6 billion in revenue. The company is engaged in about a thousand projects in 60 countries. Bechtel is headquartered in San Francisco, with more than 60 offices worldwide.

About Cephren

Cephren (www.cephren.com) is changing the way the world is built with its collaboration and e-commerce framework. Through its integrated, online collaboration and e-commerce services -- ProjectNet, MarketNet, and PrintNet -- the company seeks to increase revenues, reduce risk and improve time-to-market for the global building construction industry. Cephren is an industry pioneer serving this market and currently has more than 800 firms using its online network, representing more than 10,000 named subscribers and 350 projects on five continents with construction value that exceeds $40 billion. Cephren's framework of services is currently being used at internationally renowned firms including The Bechtel Group, Morrison Knudsen, Webcor Builders, Gensler, HOK, 3Com, Odebrecht, and BSW International. Cephren's e-commerce customers include Mass Electric Construction Company, E-J Electric Co., J. A. Penney Co., Liberty-Wesco, Fischbach & Moore LLC, DualStar Technologies, Forest Electric (EMCOR), Midwest Mechanical of New Jersey, and Watsco. Cephren has approximately 160 employees and is based in Palo Alto, California, with offices across the United States and in the United Kingdom. Cephren works through resellers in other parts of Europe, Asia and Latin America.