Launch of E-business Joint Venture
Computacenter PLC
3 November 1999
COMPUTACENTER PLC
Launch of e-business joint venture
Computacenter plc, the UK's largest provider of IT systems and services,
announced today, in conjunction with Computasoft e-Commerce, the launch of
Biomni - a business-to-business e-commerce solution. It will be a major UK
player in a market that, until now, has been dominated by US companies, and
will certainly change the dynamics of this sector in Europe.
Biomni will harness the e-commerce expertise developed by both companies
during their nine-year partnership in On-Trac. Biomni will offer this
tried and tested e-commerce solution to new customers, independent of
vendor. It will also be available to over 500 existing customers already
using the current On-Trac e-commerce solution.
Biomni, a 50/50 joint venture between Computasoft e-Commerce Ltd and
Computacenter plc, will focus solely on the rapidly growing e-commerce
business in the UK and mainland Europe.
As this is deemed to be a related party transaction, the matter requires
shareholder approval.
Angus Gregory, Managing Director of Biomni said today:
'We are very proud of this development. Biomni's launch comes at a time
when there is increasing awareness of the benefits of e-commerce. The
government has set aggressive targets aiming for the UK to be the leader in
e-commerce by 2002.'
Speaking at the launch, Computacenter's chief executive, Mike Norris, said:
'Our decision to invest in this new company reflects our belief in the e-
commerce opportunity. Biomni will enable us to extend the commercial reach
of our joint developments over the last nine years and is our response to
growing customer demand for a system that offers extended e-commerce
capability.'
For further information, please contact:
Computacenter plc
Phil Williams 01707 631519
Brunswick Group Ltd
Rob Pinker
Sara Musgrave 0171 404 5959
Notes to Editors
Computacenter plc
Computacenter plc is the largest UK-owned, distributed IT systems and
service company, providing a full range of value added services at each
stage of the technology lifecycle; from the planning and requisition of
appropriate technology, through its implementation within a company's
existing infrastructure to its subsequent support and management.
The company's corporate and government clients are served by a network of
30 branch offices across the UK, France, Germany and Belgium and, through
the international joint venture ICG, at locations throughout Europe, Asia
Pacific and North America.
Computasoft e-Commerce Ltd
Computasoft e-Commerce has been delivering electronic trading solutions
since 1990, helping to streamline the procurement process in over 500
public and private sector organisations throughout Europe. In 1998, over
150,000 purchase orders were electronically raised and delivered using
Computasoft e-Commerce systems.
Computasoft e-Commerce was also pivotal in delivering the GCAT purchasing
system, allowing numerous national and local government bodies to procure
all of their IT requirements within a single Internet shop. The GCAT
catalogue encompasses some 20,000 items from over 300 manufacturers.
Computasoft e-Commerce is part of the Computasoft Group, which has offices
in London, Walldorf, New York and Hong Kong. The group has grown steadily
since it was established in 1984 and now enjoys a turnover in excess of
over £21 million per annum. Today it has more than 500 customers around the
globe and a reputation for delivering measurable business improvement
through quality software.
Biomni Ltd
Biomni will be based in the UK, with five regional support areas and
resources in France and Germany.
Biomni's management team will be:
Angus Gregory, Managing Director, previously Electronic Business Manager at
Computacenter
Robert Farmer, Finance Director, previously Finance Director at Computasoft
For further information contact:
Beverley Burgess
Marketing Director, Biomni
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7440 6393
Email: beverley.burgess@biomni.com