apps4biz Announces Enhanced Version of Its Internet-centric Business Applications for Small Manufacturers

apps4biz® announced an enhanced version of its apps4biz family of business software applications. The apps4biz suite is comprehensive, integrated, easy-to-use and quick-to-deploy. It includes General apps4biz, Manufacturing apps4biz, e-Business apps4biz, and the apps4biz Vertical Portfolio (consisting of the General and Manufacturing suites tailored to the plastics industry). The suite encompasses functionality in the areas of manufacturing, sales order management, inventory management, purchasing management, supply chain management and e-business.

apps4biz®, a global provider of Internet-centric business applications to small manufacturers, today announced an enhanced version of its apps4biz family of business software applications.

These products will be demonstrated at the MassPlastics 2002 show March 27-28 at the Best Western Trade Center in Fitchburg, Massachusetts -- booth #1307.

The apps4biz suite is comprehensive, integrated, easy-to-use and quick-to-deploy. It includes General apps4biz, Manufacturing apps4biz, e-Business apps4biz, and the apps4biz Vertical Portfolio (consisting of the General and Manufacturing suites tailored to the plastics industry). The suite encompasses functionality in the areas of manufacturing, sales order management, inventory management, purchasing management, supply chain management and e-business.

Product Features: 30-day no-charge option for new customers
The latest version of apps4biz includes features such as an embedded report writer from Crystal Decisions that provides the most extensive reporting capabilities on the market today; additional reports added to the apps4biz report library; the first release of the apps4biz financial integration tool, which allows the apps4biz product suite to be integrated with practically any financial/accounting software package; as well as a number of performance enhancements that enable users to rapidly move through screens and process information. In-depth product detail and a link for more information on the product and company are available at www.apps4biz.com.

According to Dave Flynn, director of operations of The Rextrude Company, As a plastics extrusion manufacturer, apps4biz makes a lot of sense for us. Its a cost-effective business solution for plastics manufacturers like Rextrude. And its four simple screens and plastics market orientation make it extremely easy to implement and use. In addition, we expect its new reporting capabilities will provide us with even better management information to make improved business decisions."

apps4bizs products are available via an application subscription approach, offering customers reduced risks and no up-front capital investments. Customers, in effect, rent the applications and access them through a browser from their own intranet or from apps4biz distributors/resellers via the Internet. Built-in workflow capabilities support each individual customers unique way of doing business while management reporting and decision support capabilities add business intelligence to raw data.

Small manufacturers need back-end business systems that are specifically designed for their size and industry," said Peter Lopes, vice president of sales and marketing for apps4biz. apps4bizs business applications enable manufacturers to have access to sophisticated applications not previously available to them and without the cumbersome task of implementing them and managing them in-house. In addition, customers are able to quickly exploit the power of the Internet to manage their businesses."

apps4biz offers manufacturers a number of competitive advantages:

 Ease of Use - apps4biz offers customers simplicity through its unique four-screen user interface without menus, unlike the hundreds of screens and multilevel menus that other solutions provide. This means that users can be trained to utilize the business solution in a matter of hours versus days or weeks for competitive products. In addition, the application suite can be deployed in days as opposed to other solutions, which often take weeks or months.

 Ease of tailoring - apps4biz incorporates technology (patent pending) that facilitates the tailoring of the applications to specific vertical industries and customer needs by its partners and end-users. Other systems require custom programming changes to affect the same results.

 Industry-specific solutions - Applications have been tailored for plastics processors, ensuring that these companies have a solution designed specifically for their needs. This eliminates the requirement for product customization, lengthy training cycles and drawn-out implementations.

 Application subscription option - apps4biz products can be deployed externally via application service providers (ASPs), or internally on a companys own intranet. apps4bizs application subscription approach enables customers to rent" the software, thereby reducing their business risks as well as eliminating up-front capital requirements and the need for additional information technology infrastructure. This approach also enables small businesses to easily conduct business globally with Web-savvy customers and suppliers.

To obtain the name of the nearest apps4biz channel partner, interested parties should call Barbara Langathianos at 877-427-7742, ext. 105. Organizations can obtain information about becoming an apps4biz reseller by calling Peter Lopes at 978-749-3092, x101, or by applying through the apps4biz website. apps4biz is available on a subscription basis beginning at $150 per user per month.