Medical Device Manufacturer Gains Greater Supply Chain Visibility, Accuracy With Flexnet(TM) From Apriso®


LONG BEACH, Calif. - Oct. 31, 2005 - Sage Products, a manufacturer of medical cosmetics, devices, and over-the-counter drugs, can now track its work-in-progress inventory and in-transit materials throughout its supply chain with 100 percent accuracy, thanks to Sage's recent upgrade to FlexNet(TM) from Apriso® Corporation. The system, which went live in August, automates manufacturing, improves labor tracking, and enhances quality assurance on the shop floor. Sage anticipates bottom-line benefits from new efficiencies, inventory visibility, and historic records that allow it to meet stringent FDA requirements.

For years, Sage Products relied on Apriso's CIM+ software to manage its manufacturing operations, along with a point solution for bill-of-material maintenance. As Sage's business grew, the company felt the need to transition to a system built on a service-oriented architecture, one that integrated manufacturing activity with business processes.

Sage found its solution in FlexNet from Apriso Corporation - the world's first adaptive manufacturing operations execution platform and solution set. FlexNet integrates in real time with ERP systems to enable faster and better decision-making. Together, FlexNet and ERP deliver an enterprise-wide manufacturing system that can readily respond to changing strategic, market and regulatory requirements.

Sage Products uses the software to manage activity on the shop floor, reporting on finished goods production data. Only three months into the deployment, the company has already seen significant improvements in several areas.

"With FlexNet, our accuracy is much better in raw materials and finished goods," says Bill Kale, director of information technology, Sage Products. "We know exactly how many cases are being produced on each line, as well as the labor hours spent by employees running each piece of equipment. We have more reliable data on scrap totals. The software lets us track manufacturing without slowing down the manufacturing process or forcing us to add headcount. All of these will result in significant savings of both time and money."

**Complete Product History, Materials-Tracing Accountability
The need for a comprehensive product history record is a requirement common to most manufacturers, particularly those in FDA-regulated industries. FlexNet has given Sage Products the ability to trace the complete history of each of its products, providing an electronic genealogy and a record of raw material components by lot number, as required by the FDA.

As a maker of healthcare products, Sage must also account for all materials used in production and reconcile counts at the end of each run. FlexNet allows the company to track its inventory and materials through the supply chain with 100 percent accuracy, enabled by a robust set of features that follow the components assigned to a specific line, while keeping track of the volume of components consumed, scrapped and/or remaining.

"We can account for absolutely everything," Kale explains.

Sage selected Apriso as its standard for manufacturing execution systems across all business areas. The manufacturer's FlexNet system included labor, production and quality modules. The project team included Apriso and Sage Products personnel who collaborated throughout the project lifecycle to implement the solution at the customer's main facility in Cary, Ill.

**Pricing and Availability
FlexNet is sold directly by Apriso and through certified resellers. Pricing is based upon the number of modules purchased and company size. For further information, call (888) 400-7587.

**About Sage Products, Inc.
For more information, visit the Sage web site at www.sageproducts.com.

**About Apriso Corporation
Apriso is the leader in delivering real-time solutions for Supply Network Operations. This new class of enterprise software enables global operations to define, operate, and monitor supply, production and distribution processes in real time, globally. Apriso's software, known as FlexNet®, is a dynamic, Web-services-based suite of applications that synchronizes the execution of real time manufacturing and supply chain operations across supply networks.

Apriso operates in 9 countries across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company has more than 140 customers and over 350 installations worldwide. Its rapidly-growing customer base includes such high-profile, global companies as General Motors, Lear, Honeywell, Microsoft, Merck, Lockheed Martin, ITT, Baker Hughes, Halliburton, International Paper, Rubbermaid, Matsushita Avionics Systems, Saint-Gobain, Pechiney, and British American Tobacco. For more information, visit the Apriso Web site at www.apriso.com.

Apriso is a registered trademark of Apriso Corporation. FlexNet is a trademark of Apriso Corporation. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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