Pioneer Corporation Deploys Kinaxis RapidResponse for Dynamic Demand and Supply Chain Management

Market Wire, November, 2008

Editors note: A photo is included with this press release.

Kinaxis(TM) Inc., provider of the on-demand RapidResponse service that empowers multi-enterprise manufacturers with the collaborative and integrated demand-supply planning, monitoring, and response capabilities required in today's complex and dynamic world, today announced that Pioneer Corporation's Mobile Entertainment Business Group - the leading electronic manufacturer's most rapidly growing business unit - will deploy RapidResponse.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Pioneer provides mobile entertainment products to major automotive customers in Japan, Europe and the United States from its primary manufacturing facility in Asia. Pioneer selected RapidResponse in place of an extension to its legacy supply chain planning solution, because of its ability to:

- provide multi-enterprise supply chain visibility ,

- perform detailed analysis based on real-time Materials Resource Planning (MRP) calculations and

- support worldwide Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) initiatives.

Pioneer was looking for a solution that could allow them to better align supply and demand, while reducing excess inventory and providing early detection of shortages. With deep supply chain visibility into manufacturing operations and real-time "what-if" scenario simulation capabilities, RapidResponse empowers Pioneer to determine the impact of changes within the supply chain and respond quickly and confidently, meeting both customer and corporate objectives. RapidResponse is projected to reduce both inventory and expedited shipment costs.

"As the market for mobile entertainment products continues to prosper, the stakes are high to provide on-time delivery and exemplary service to our global leading automotive customers," said Hiroshi Tatsuta, General Manager, Production Management Department at Pioneer Corporation. "We chose RapidResponse for its unparalleled ability to enable us to keep up with ever-evolving demand patterns and in turn, better serve our customers."

"The ability to make informed supply chain related decisions on the fly is integral to maintaining the competitiveness of a company - even more so for those industries that are experiencing rapid change," said Randy Littleson, vice president of marketing at Kinaxis. "RapidResponse uniquely combines supply chain visibility of demand and supply within a single solution, with real-time analysis and simulation capabilities that will help Pioneer to thrive within this fast-growing industry."

The deployment, which is expected to be completed by early 2009, is being performed in conjunction with Kinaxis partner, and leading Systems Integrator, EXA Corporation. Upon completion of a successful implementation, RapidResponse is expected to be integrated into other Pioneer divisions.

About Kinaxis

Kinaxis(TM) RapidResponse is a single on-demand service that empowers multi-enterprise manufacturers with collaborative and integrated demand-supply planning, monitoring, and response capabilities. RapidResponse embraces human judgment to enable planners and front-line responders to handle unpredictable changes. Global leaders such as Casio, Honeywell, Jabil, Qualcomm, and Raytheon use RapidResponse to achieve breakthroughs in sales and operations planning (S&OP), demand management, supply management, and supply chain risk management. The results are superior customer service, improved operations performance, and a competitive market advantage. For more information, visit the Kinaxis web site at http://www.kinaxis.com/ or the company's blog at http://www.21stcenturysupplychain.com/ .

Contacts: Kinaxis Inc. www.kinaxis.com www.21stcenturysupplychain.com (company's blog)