SPE.L Regulatory News (SPE)

12 Jul 2006 07:01

Sopheon PLC12 July 2006 Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs Wednesday 12th July 2006 Sopheon Plc ('Sopheon') Reckitt Benckiser Enhances Product Development with Enterprise-wide Deployment of Sopheon's Process and Portfolio Management System Household-Cleaning Product Giant Implements Sopheon's Accolade to Establish a Common Process for Creating New Products Sopheon, the international software and services company, confirmed today thatReckitt Benckiser, one of the world's largest household-cleaning productsmanufacturers, has implemented Sopheon's Accolade process and portfoliomanagement system to provide an enterprise-wide platform for new productdevelopment. The company began using the solution a little more than a year agoin an initial deployment that spans 40 countries and involves approximately 600users in marketing, research and development, manufacturing, finance andexecutive management. Reckitt Benckiser is a global consumer goods manufacturer with operations in 60countries. The company's well-known brands include Lysol, Finish, Air Wick,Vanish, Easy-Off, Woolite, Spray 'n Wash, d-Con and French's Mustard. ReckittBenckiser is using Sopheon's Accolade to establish a common process fordeveloping new products across all of its operating units. Deployment of thesoftware is an element of a larger strategy aimed at supporting the creation ofnew-to-the-world consumer products and minimizing the time required to bringthose products to market. New product launches within the past 36 monthsaccount for almost 40% of Reckitt Benckiser's total net revenues. The collaborative, Web-based environment produced by the Accolade system allowscross-functional teams that drive the company's innovation processes to workmore efficiently and reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks. Aprincipal reason for Reckitt Benckiser's selection of Accolade was the Sopheonsolution's capacity to integrate with Microsoft Office technologies. Thisfeature provides users with access to a mix of robust, easy-to-use tools forcapturing, recording and reporting critical project-related information.Accolade's portfolio management capabilities provide real-time views of thebusiness potential and status of projects to inform project selection andprioritization decisions. "Reckitt Benckiser's continued leadership of the household-cleaning productsmarket is directly attributable to their year-after-year success in developingsuperior new products," said Mike Connolly, European director for Sopheon. "Their selection of Accolade is a reflection of the strict, sophisticatedstandards and requirements that have made them masters of innovation. ReckittBenckiser's deployment extends a pattern of recent Accolade adoption by some ofthe most creative and top-performing consumer packaged goods companies in theworld. We're delighted by the growing acceptance of our offering in thisdemanding, high-potential market." Sopheon Accolade(R) is a registered trademark of Sopheon plc. Lysol(R), Finish(R), Air Wick(R), Vanish(R), Easy-Off(R), Woolite(R), Spray 'nWash(R), d-Con(R) and French's Mustard(R) are registered trademarks of Reckitt Benckiserplc. Microsoft(R) is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademarks are the sole property of their respective owners. About Reckitt Benckiser Reckitt Benckiser is the world's No.1 Company in household-cleaning products,(excluding laundry) and a leading player in health and personal care. They are atruly global company with a consumer-oriented vision, operations in 60countries, sales in 180 countries and net revenues in excess of £4 billion/$7billion. Reckitt Benckiser is passionate about delivering better solutions -making life easier for consumers around the world is what drives their constantinnovation. For more information, please visit www.reckittbenckiser.com. About Sopheon Sopheon (LSE: SPE) is an international provider of software and services thathelp organizations improve the business impact of product innovation. TheSopheon Accolade(R) product innovation process and portfolio management systemautomates gate- or phase-based product development processes and providesstrategic decision support that allows companies to increase revenue and profitsfrom new products. Sopheon is listed on the AIM Market of the London StockExchange and on the Euronext in the Netherlands. For more information, pleasevisit www.sopheon.com. Barry Mence, Chairman Sopheon plc Tel : + 44 (0) 1483 685 735Arif Karimjee, CFOAndrew Tan Hansard Communications Tel : + 44 (0) 207 245 1100 + 44 (0) 7957 203 685Frank Jansen Citigate First Financial Tel : + 31 (0) 205 754 010 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange