SSA Global Technologies Announces BPCS eProcurement, an e-commmerce Solution Developed by Digital Union

Business Wire, Oct 29, 2001

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN ANTONIO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 29, 2001

At the APICS 2001 International Conference, SSA Global Technologies Inc.(TM) (SSA GT(TM)), a worldwide provider of enterprise solutions and services, and Digital Union(TM), a leading e-business solutions provider for small to medium-sized enterprises, announced an OEM agreement that allows SSA GT to offer its clients BPCS eProcurement, powered by Digital Union. This solution, the first in a series of e-commerce solutions offered by SSA GT, gives SSA GT clients the ability to positively impact their bottom line by substantially lowering transaction costs while increasing productivity in purchase order processing and strategic sourcing.

BPCS eProcurement solution is centered on Digital Union's ezMarket, a solution that extends a company's capabilities by facilitating the management of procurement approval procedures and the generation and tracking of purchase orders until goods are received. Built using IBM(R) WebSphere Commerce Suite, this solution offers a low-risk entry into complete on-line procurement by drastically reducing the time and costs of developing a comprehensive, interactive solution for managing both sales and purchases.

"eProcurement is one of the e-commerce areas that is delivering rapid and quantifiable results," said Mike Greenough, chairman, president and chief executive officer, SSA GT. "With this solution, SSA GT clients can obtain significant cost reductions and rapid ROI. Additionally, clients can interact and integrate with industry standard marketplaces and buying consortia, allowing them to further their competitive advantage."

BPCS eProcurement initially focuses on maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), procurement and strategic sourcing. SSA GT currently plans to add functionality to address entry level and direct material procurement next year.

"SSA GT's strong ERP backbone coupled with our proven eProcurement offering will benefit any company across all vertical industries," said Patrick Lawton, CEO, Digital Union. "This solution allows companies to successfully exploit eProcurement opportunities but also benefit from quick time-to-value."

SSA GT's solutions will be on display at the APICS 2001 International Conference in San Antonio, October 29-31, booth no. 230.

About Digital Union

Founded in 1998 and now one of the fastest growing companies in the United Kingdom, Digital Union UK Ltd was formed to support early e-business adopters in the UK and Europe. Initially Digital Union marketed a number of innovative products from a number of leading US partners, including IBM and Lotus. It provides platforms for e-commerce site creation as well as the middleware tools to support database-level and message-level integration of the e-business solutions with existing IT systems.

Digital Union produces its own software tools to develop innovative e-business products in co-operation with its partners. As the first IBM e-business Solution Advisor in the UK, Digital Union markets a version of IBM's Websphere Commerce Suite specifically tailored for use in the small to medium sized enterprise (SME) sector.

Digital Union specifically aims its products and services at SMEs, where it uses a rapid project implementation approach to deliver a solution in a few months and at a fraction of the costs charged by larger players. Visit the Digital Union Web site at www.digitalunion.com.

About SSA Global Technologies

SSA Global Technologies, Inc., is a leading provider of enterprise software and services to the world's industrial sector companies, dedicated to the assessment, design, development, implementation and support of business solutions which improve business processes and increase profitability.

SSA GT's core product, BPCS, is a flexible ERP platform that easily integrates with strategic partner applications to deliver e-commerce, business intelligence, customer relationship (CRM) and supply-chain solutions. Worldwide, SSA GT is focused on addressing the needs of industrial sector companies, more specifically in the automotive supply, consumer goods (incorporating fast moving consumer goods, food beverage and tobacco and consumer electronics), pharmaceutical/chemical and general manufacturing industries.

Headquartered in Chicago, SSA GT operates offices throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia/Pacific/Japan and Latin America. To find out more, visit the SSA GT Web site at www.ssagt.com.

BPCS is a registered trademark; SSA Global Technologies and SSA GT are trademarks of SSA Global Technologies, Inc. Other products mentioned in this document are registered, trademarked or service marked by their respective owners.