WESTBORO, Mass. /PRNewswire-FirstCall/--
Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL), the
enterprise data integration leader, is helping more
than 150 of the leading global retailers improve and
enhance their operational performance, including
Eroski and The Tengelmann Group subsidiaries Plus,
Kaiser's Tengelmann, and Kaiser's Drugstore.
Ascential
Software is playing a critical role in helping each
company integrate enterprise data to improve
business operations, streamline the supply chain,
enhance in-store productivity, and gain a more
accurate view of customer information.
"The retail sector operates on razor-thin margins in a
fiercely
competitive environment. The most successful
retailers understand the importance of accurate,
reliable data in developing successful promotional
and marketing programs, understanding customers and
ensuring an efficient supply chain," said Thracy
Varvoglis, executive director of industry solutions
at Ascential Software. "Leading retailers are
investing in strategic applications
to improve their overall efficiencies and
competitiveness in an environment that continues to
be challenging. These applications demand the kind
of enterprise data integration that only Ascential
Software can deliver."
Eroski and The Tengelmann Group required a scalable
data integration platform to help them better
understand customer data generated from multiple
sources in the enterprise and then leverage the
information in new and consolidated applications. In
addition to improving supply chain visibility and
managing point-of-sale data, other top initiatives
that retailers are undertaking include customer
relationship management and master data
management, in part to prepare for data
synchronization activities like UCCnet and RFID.
Customer Overviews
Eroski
Eroski, one of Spain's largest retail chains with more
than 1,500 stores mainly in the hypermarket and
supermarket sectors, selected Ascential DataStage(TM)
TX. Faced with increasing complexity of applications
and growing demand for interfaces, Eroski was
looking to streamline the way they integrated their
IT portfolio. "We selected Ascential DataStage TX
because of
its well-proven ability to handle complex data types
and transformations," commented Jesus Miqaur, IT
director at Eroski. "Over the next two years, we
intend to expand our use of Ascential Software's
technology to provide a complete integration
environment for our business."
The Tengelmann Group
The Tengelmann Group is one of the world's leading
retail chains, with annual revenues in excess of $20
billion and an international presence. "Ascential is
helping The Tengelmann Group become a 'right time'
retail enterprise, accelerating the movement of
point-of-sale data for 4,500 supermarkets, discount
stores and drug stores, and integrating real-time
data
from 1,000 suppliers," commented Frank Jelinek,
technical communications manager for Kaiser's
Tengelmann. "We selected Ascential Software because
we can create reusable integration components that
enable us to harmonize a very diverse business and
technical landscape quickly. Ascential Software's
technology has demonstrated itself expert at
handling point-of-sale and EDI
data in multiple formats from multiple sources
enabling us to cut time from critical replenishment
and supply chain processes."
Many of the world's leading retailers rely on Ascential
Software for powerful data integration solutions and
services to help overcome the specific business
challenges and issues they face today, including
pricing and promotion optimization; achieving a
single view of customers, suppliers and products;
shortening the replenishment cycle through improved
store data integration; managing multiple trading
relationships with suppliers over
different industry standards; implementing radio
frequency identification to optimize inventory; and
implementing UCCnet requirements with key CPG
suppliers. The Ascential Enterprise Integration
Suite(TM) enables retailers to overcome these
challenges and move to real-time solutions.
Ascential
Software's global retail customers include:
-- AB Lindex
-- Allders Department Stores
-- Amazon.com
-- BizRate.com
-- BJ's Wholesale
-- Chevy's Restaurant
-- Cole National
-- CompUSA
-- dm-Filiadata
-- Dunnes Stores
-- Eroski
-- Food Lion
-- Galeries Lafayette
-- Home Depot
-- Homebase
-- Jenny Craig
-- Kingfisher, Plc.
-- Pier 1 Imports
-- Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd
-- Saks Fifth Avenue
-- Starbucks Coffee
-- The Tengelmann Group, including Plus, Kaiser's
Tengelmann, and Kaiser's Drugstore
-- VWR International
-- Woolworths
The Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite is a
comprehensive data integration solution that
profiles, cleanses, and transforms data from
virtually any application or system regardless of
data volume or latency. Ascential Software's
integrated offering is designed to help companies
streamline operations, improve customer support,
expedite business transactions, and make better
tactical and strategic decisions on the basis of
the best available information. The suite provides
unlimited scalability through parallel processing,
complete meta data management, and any-to-any data
source and application connectivity, and delivers
on-demand data integration seamlessly within an
enterprise's service-oriented architecture.
About Ascential Software
Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL) is the
leader in enterprise data integration. Customers and
partners worldwide use the Ascential Enterprise
Integration Suite(TM) to confidently transform data
into accurate, reliable and complete business
information to improve operational performance and
decision-making across every critical business
dimension. Our comprehensive end-to-end solutions
provide on demand data integration complemented by
our professional services, industry expertise, and
methodologies.
Ascential Software is headquartered in Westboro, Mass.,
and has more than 3,000 customers and partners
globally across such industries as financial
services and banking, insurance, healthcare, retail,
manufacturing, consumer packaged goods,
telecommunications and government. For more
information call
1-800-966-9875 (or 1-508-366-3888 from outside the
U.S. or Canada) or visit the Ascential Software
website at http://www.ascential.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains
forward-looking statements based on current
expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of
assumptions about future events, and these
statements are subject to important factors and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements. The forward-looking
statements in this release address a variety of
subjects including, for example, the functionality,
characteristics, quality and performance
capabilities of Ascential Software's products and
technology; results achievable and benefits
attainable through deployment of Ascential
Software's products and provision
of services; Ascential's expanding presence in
retail markets; improvements in operational
performance; Ascential's role in improving business
operations, streamlining supply chains, enhancing
productivity, and gaining a more accurate view of
information; attributes and trends within the retail
sector;
investments by retailers; trends in data
synchronization activities; and expansion of use of
Ascential's products. The following factors, among
others, could cause actual results to differ
materially from those described in these
forward-looking statements: the ability of Ascential
Software to
expand its market share; growth rates for the
enterprise data integration software market; general
business conditions in the software industry, the
technology sector, and in the domestic and
international economies; rapid technological change
in the markets served by Ascential Software;
dependence on international operations; global and
geopolitical instability; and difficulties that
Ascential Software may experience integrating
technologies,
operations and personnel of completed or future
acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and
other cautionary statements, please refer to the
filings made by Ascential Software with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including,
without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report
on Form 10-Q. Ascential Software disclaims any
intent or obligation to update any
forward-looking statements made herein to reflect
any change in Ascential Software's expectations with
regard thereto or any change in events, conditions,
or circumstances on which such statements are based.
Ascential Software is not responsible for statements
attributed to third parties within this release or
in any materials referenced herein. Partnerships
described herein shall be deemed to be strategic
alliances only, and shall not imply the
power of either partner to bind the other partner or
to incur obligations on behalf of the other partner.
Ascential, Ascential DataStage, DataStage, and
Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite are
trademarks of Ascential Software Corporation or its
affiliates and may be registered in the United
States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the
property of the owners of those marks.
05.11.04 
