Business Editors
YARDLEY, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 29, 2002
Saint-Gobain Abrasives the world leader in abrasives featuring Norton, Carborundum, Winter, Merit, and many other brands has joined Trading Partner Connect, Prophet 21's (Nasdaq:PXXI) Internet trading network.
They bring with them the strength of Saint-Gobain's entire product catalog.
Prophet 21 Trading Partner Connect streamlines the commerce process between distributors, their manufacturers/suppliers, and end-users, thereby increasing sales and improving customer service while reducing operating costs.
"Prophet 21 welcomes Norton and Saint-Gobain to Trading Partner Connect," says Chuck Boyle, Prophet 21 president and CEO. "We are confident that as they look to streamline their processes with distributors, Saint-Gobain will find Trading Partner Connect an invaluable resource."
Rick Nowlin, Industrial Distribution & Marketing manager at Saint Gobain Abrasives is convinced. "Trading Partner Connect fulfills a need in the supply chain," he says. "Manufacturers and distributors must work together in the future in order to be successful, and Trading Partner Connect provides an efficient means to do just that."
Nowlin says Saint-Gobain Abrasives became aware of Trading Partner Connect through several of their distributors who recommended that they join as well as other manufactures that were already members or Trading Partner Connect.
"They knew we were looking for ways to reduce transaction costs and streamline processes," says Nowlin, who is also a member of the Industrial Supply Manufacturers Association (ISMA) e-commerce committee. "Trading Partner Connect enables us to have a direct connection with our distributors, giving them the ability to order directly from our ERP system. At the same time, Trading Partner Connect allows us to integrate with the distributors' system, allowing us to share information that will enable us to operate more effectively."
Saint-Gobain Abrasives joins more than 15 other manufacturer members on Trading Partner Connect. As a manufacturer, Saint-Gobain Abrasives will be able to offer several of Trading Partner Connects' capabilities including:
-- Real-Time Availability Lookup - reduce time-consuming price and availability calls while improving customer service -- Streamline Commerce Transactions - send and receive documents electronically to reduce costly re-keying errors and better service distributors by automatically uploading ship dates and invoices into a distributor's computer system -- Supply Chain Collaboration - view distributor data to gain important sales and manufacturing information and provide electronic price updates to eliminate pricing errors -- Sell More by Better Educating Distributors - link information about products and related items to educate distributors so they can make better recommendations to their customers -- And much more.
About Saint-Gobain Abrasives
Saint-Gobain is a $28 billion company based in Paris. Saint-Gobain is ranked among the top 150 industrial companies in the world.
Saint-Gobain Abrasives supports major markets including metalworking, automotive manufacturing, automotive aftermarket, aerospace, woodworking, bearing, sporting goods, Do-It-Yourself retailers, and the foundry market.
The world's leading supplier of bonded abrasives, with more than 250,000 types and sizes, most custom-designed and engineered for specific applications, Norton is also a leading manufacturer of coated abrasive products, offering more than 38,000 types of coated products with a variety of abrasive grains and backings.
About Trading Partner Connect
Trading Partner Connect, an Internet trading network, streamlines the commerce process between distributors, their manufacturers/suppliers, and end-users, thereby increasing sales and improving customer service while reducing operating costs.
Distributors benefit from dead stock reduction, lower EDI/VAN costs, and access to a rationalized catalog of millions of items, enabling them to compete on a larger scale and improve customer service. In addition, distributors may connect with other purchasing platforms and trading communities through Trading Partner Connect.
Distributors may also develop Web sites to give their customers on-line customer service and ordering capabilities 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Manufacturers/suppliers benefit, by improving their ability to interact with distributors and more accurately predict consumer usage of their products. This reduces transaction costs and will increase sales and improve customer service.
Prophet 21 CommerceCenter and Prophet 21 Acclaim are fully interoperable with Trading Partner Connect.
About Prophet 21
Since 1967, Prophet 21 has been a leader in providing durable goods distributors with innovative, adaptive solutions essential for running their businesses.
With more than 2,000 customers and 70,000 users conducting over $35 billion in highly complex supply chain transactions annually, Prophet 21 is a true business partner, helping companies of all sizes leverage technologies and maintain a competitive advantage.
Through its business technology and services, Prophet 21 seeks to streamline customers' business processes and reduce transaction costs to maximize profit and growth.
Prophet 21 offers enterprise software solutions for Windows 2000 and UNIX. Prophet 21's enterprise software solutions provide organizations with powerful, highly customizable applications designed to improve customer service and maximize their return on investment.
In addition, the company offers an Internet trading network that streamlines the commerce process between distributors, their manufacturers/suppliers, and end users. A complete line of professional services backs all Prophet 21 solutions.
For more information about Prophet 21, please visit www.p21.com or call 1-800-PROPHET, ext. 3120.
Copyright (c) 2002 Prophet 21, Inc. All rights reserved. Prophet 21 and Prophet 21 Acclaim are registered trademarks of Prophet 21, Inc. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective companies.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, the risks detailed in the Company's filings and reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such statements are only predictions and actual events or results may differ materially.
Potential risks and uncertainties that could affect the Company's future operating results include, but are not limited to: (i) economic conditions, including economic conditions related to the computer industry; (ii) the availability of components and parts from the Company's vendors at current prices and levels; (iii) the intense competition in the markets for the Company's products and service; (iv) the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property; (v) potential infringement claims against the Company for its software development products; (vi) the Company's ability to obtain customer maintenance contracts at current levels; and (vii) the Company's ability to develop, market, provide, and achieve market acceptance of new service offerings to new and existing clients.
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