SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A. - The Westaim Corporation announced today that it has agreed to purchase up to 25 per cent of Silicon Valley-based Technology Deployment International, Inc. (TDI), a privately held leader in e-business management software. Westaim’s investment in TDI will be approximately CDN$20 million.
TDI recently launched its flagship product, E-Business Management System (EBMSTM), an e-business management platform that allows new and existing businesses to quickly and cost-effectively enter the business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) marketplace.
For an existing company, EBMSTM sits “on top” of its back-office systems such as purchasing, accounting and inventory management. EBMSTM software allows these back-end systems to catch up with the e-business revolution at a fraction of the cost of customizing or replacing systems.
“We look forward to working with TDI to rapidly proliferate the EBMS platform,“ said Kevin Jenkins, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Westaim Corporation. “We believe that TDI’s EBMS will prove to be the simplest, fastest, and most cost-effective software solution for any company interested in e-business.”
Officially launched only in December 1999, TDI’s EBMSTM early customers already include a number of industry leaders such as: Fujitsu Limited, Cisco Systems, Qualcomm, Nortel, Alfa Systems and GKN Sinter Metal.
“Westaim is an ideal partner for TDI,” said Dr. Mohammad Ketabchi, CEO, President, and Chairman of TDI. “We chose Westaim as our first outside investor because of their direct experience in launching technologies into the marketplace. Westaim will also help us extend the reach of EBMS to application domains we could not reach on our own.”
Analysts estimate that by 2002 there will be more than 400,000 e-businesses in the United States alone. The B2B market is expected to grow to US $1.3 trillion by 2003 and the B2C market is expected to reach $14 billion by 2002. The development of technology to support this growth will be critical. Established companies setting up e-commerce operations are experiencing severe difficulties adapting their back-end systems and business processes to an over-the-Web execution of orders that is in concert with all other operations.
“The success of any e-business greatly depends on the company’s ability to properly transform and manage critical business processes on the Internet. TDI’s EBMSTM allows for the rapid deployment and real-time management of business processes over the web and improves business performance,” said Nathaniel Palmer, Senior Analyst, The Delphi Group.
About EBMS
EBMS is an e-business management platform that allows new and existing businesses to quickly and cost-effectively gain competitive advantage in the B2B and B2C marketplace. It includes built-in monitoring and management functionality. EBMS collects and stores business level transaction and performance data, which combined with business rules enables dynamic management of business processes in today’s fast-paced marketplace.
EBMS is a multi-platform, scalable, distributed, and robust system developed using Java, XML, Web, and database technologies. It includes six components: BizSite, an operation portal for hosting applications and operations; BizLogic, a graphic application building platform; BizPulse, a business rule and event-correlation system; BizStore, a business-intelligence repository; BizManage, a management portal for monitoring, analyzing, reporting, and controlling business processes; and BizAdapters, for interoperation with external systems.
About TDI
Technology Deployment International, Inc., a privately held company in Santa Clara, California, develops and deploys E-Business software that supports business performance improvement over the Internet, using its flagship product EBMSTM. TDI supplies software and services to leading Internet companies including Cisco Systems, Computer Associates, Fujitsu, HP, Philips, and Qualcomm. For more information visit http://www.tdiinc.com.
About Westaim
The Westaim Corporation is a technology incubator that launches exceptional technologies into the marketplace. Its technology subsidiaries include Westaim Biomedical Corp., which has developed an infection control technology for use in the treatment of wounds, and iFire Technology Inc., which has developed a revolutionary low-cost flat panel display. A TSE 300 company, Westaim’s common shares are listed on The Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol WED.
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Contact:
Tony Johnston
Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs
The Westaim Corporation
(403) 234-3107
info@westaim.com
www.westaim.com
Adrian Nazari
Vice President of Marketing
Technology Deployment International (TDI)
Phone: (408) 330-3496
adrian@tdiinc.com
www.tdiinc.com
This news release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and the Company can give no assurance that these expectations are correct. Various factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in such statements, including financial considerations and those predicting the timing and market acceptance of future products. The Company disclaims any intention or obligations to revise forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this Cautionary Statement.
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