SPE.L Regulatory News (SPE)

2 Mar 2006 07:03

Sopheon PLC02 March 2006 Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs Thursday 2nd March 2006 Sopheon Plc ('Sopheon') Greene, Tweed Deploys Sopheon's Process and Product Portfolio Management Solution Ease-of-Use and Configurability Underpin Company's Adoption of Accolade as Foundation for Enhanced Innovation Management Processes MINNEAPOLIS and LONDON3/4March 2, 20063/4Sopheon, the international software andservices company, announced today that Greene, Tweed, a leading globalmanufacturer of high-performance seals and engineered components, has chosen toadopt Sopheon's product life cycle management (PLM) process and productportfolio management solution. Sopheon's Accolade system will serve as thebackbone application for Greene, Tweed's enhancement of its methodologies forachieving product innovation. The enterprise-wide deployment of the softwareencompasses company locations in the U.S., Asia and Europe. Founded more than 140 years ago, Greene, Tweed produces customized solutionsranging from plastic, composite and sealing components to fiber opticconnectors. For instance, in 1964 Greene, Tweed developed the G-T(R) Ringpiston seal for F-4 Phantom fighter jets. The solution remains a core part ofaerospace landing gears. Ninety percent of today's commercial and militaryaircraft contain components developed and manufactured by the company. Greene,Tweed's products are also used in the medical, biotechnology, petroleum, fluidhandling and semiconductor industries. Throughout its history, Greene, Tweed has relied upon continuous innovation forits business success. Greene, Tweed's recent adoption of Accolade is aimed atensuring successful execution of their newly implemented staged developmentprocess. The Sopheon system automates this new process, seamlessly integratingit into the work environment and daily activities of product teams and executivedecision-makers. It provides a foundation for efficient, consistent managementof a product from idea to launch. Greene, Tweed selected Accolade overalternative solutions because of its ease-of-use and its capacity to makecritical data transparent to decision makers. The system is also simple toreconfigure, an advantage that has allowed Greene, Tweed to act on its own tocreate a customized process with supporting tools and components. "We are committed to a structured new product development methodology," saidMichael Glessner, VP and General Manager of Business and Technology Incubator atGreene, Tweed. "Accolade has made that methodology part of the core operatingfabric of our company, and provided a solid foundation for our innovationefforts. The flexibility of that foundation has allowed us to build on it, finetuning information views and process deliverables while implementing otherenhancements that continue to expand the value of the system. Accolade willserve as our platform for innovation." "Product life cycle management is a dynamic process," said Andy Michuda, chiefexecutive officer of Sopheon. "To be effective, it must mirror the evolution ofa company's business. Trying to support product life cycle management with astatic software solution is an open invitation to process failure. Greene,Tweed understands the value of PLM software that allows them to alter theirprocess to match changing business and organizational demands. They exemplifythe good things that happen when a client assumes ownership for Accolade and,without the need for assistance from Sopheon's customer-service organization,takes advantage of the software's advanced configuration capabilities. Thiskind of implementation independence is something we aim for with our clients.It puts them in a position to act quickly and cost-effectively whenever theyneed to adjust their process to ensure its viability and optimize its businessimpact." Sopheon Accolade(R) is a registered trademark of Sopheon plc.G-T(R) Ring is a registered trademark of Greene, Tweed.All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the soleproperty of their respective owners. About Greene, Tweed Greene, Tweed leverages expertise in a variety of markets and products to givecustomers the most innovative solutions to meet performance challenges andreduce total cost of operation. With fully qualified engineering, sales andsupport personnel located throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, Greene,Tweed delivers solutions to individual customer applications on a global scope.Greene, Tweed products are sold and distributed worldwide. For more information,please visit www.gtweed.com. About Sopheon Sopheon (LSE: SPE) is an international provider of software and services thathelp organizations improve the business impact of product development. TheSopheon Accolade(R) product development system automates gate- or phase-basedproduct development processes and provides strategic decision support thatallows companies to improve innovation, cut product development spending wasteand shorten time to market. Sopheon is listed on the AIM Market of the LondonStock Exchange and on the Euronext in the Netherlands. For more information,please visit www.sopheon.com. For further information contact: Arif Karimjee, CFO Sopheon plc Tel : + 44 (0) 1483 685 735 Andrew Tan Hansard Communications Tel : + 44 (0) 207 245 1100 + 44 (0) 7957 203 685Floor van Maaren Citigate First Financial Tel : + 31 (0) 205 754 010 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange