STOCKHOLM, Sweden, March 15, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- Intentia International AB (publ) (XSSE;INT B) becomes the world's first supplier of Enterprise Applications to offer an integrated system for origin tracing of food items. Through its acquisition of 49 percent of the shares in the Norwegian software Development Company Scase A/S, Intentia expands its Movex e-collaboration solution to include Scase's products for origin tracing. The integrated system will revolutionize food companies' ability to trace products through the entire product supply chain.
A better origin tracing system means an improved ability to quickly and securely trace food products that may be damaged or infected by disease. Intentia's customers will be able to use the most modern IT technology to help them combat the spreading of diseases such as mad cow disease (BSE) and hoof-and-mouth disease.
"The new Movex functionality will enable our customers to trace individual pieces of meat all the way from meat displays in stores back through de-boning centers, slaughterhouses, transport, veterinarians and finally to the original farm or ranch," explained John Gledhill, Food & Beverage Industry Application Manager, Intentia. Intentia is already a leading supplier of solutions for the food and beverage industry with a number of large customers in Sweden and throughout the world. "We anticipate being able to strengthen our leading position in the food and beverage industry by this expansion of our integrated solution for e-collaboration," added John Gledhill.
This integrated origin tracing functionality, offering vastly improved product tracing capabilities throughout the supply chain, is in line with the current EU directives on origin tracing. "Consumers will be safer in that they will be able to see detailed information about where the meat comes from, not only the country of origin but also the individual farm or ranch," explained John Gledhill.
For Intentia's customers, the new integrated solution provides an easy way to trace individual packages with complete quality control. For example, should the need arise to recall meat that has already been distributed, it will now be possible to trace the packages in question. This functionality is not provided at the same level of detail by any other integrated software solution today. Without this functionality it leaves individual companies vulnerable to large potential losses when the kind of hoof-and-mouth disease alarm that recently swept Europe sounds.
"Recalling meat that has already been delivered is a fact of life we will have to live with for a while. More effective tracing is an important motivating factor in our offering this type of integrated solution to our customers. It is very important to control the economic consequences for our customers to the greatest extent possible," concluded John Gledhill, Food & Beverage Industry Application Manager, Intentia R&D.
Scase has received a lot of media attention for its applications for origin tracing of food products. With Intentia's acquisition of Scase, this functionality will be incorporated into Movex Food & Beverage and be further refined. Scase will provide Intentia with a combination of depth, breadth and specialized know-how in applications for managing meat, among other products, that no other supplier of business systems can offer.
For additional information, please contact: Thomas Ahlerup Director Corporate Communications Intentia International AB Telephone:+46-8-5552 5766 Fax:+46-8-5552 5999 Cell phone:+46-708-545 666 e-mail:thomas.ahlerup@intentia.se
About Scase A/S
Scase is a Norwegian software company whose 12 employees focus on developing software for the food and beverage industry. Scase has an annual turnover of NOK 16 million and customers in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Italy, Malta and Greece.
Visit Scase A/S at www.scase.com
About Intentia International AB (publ)
Over the past few years, Intentia International AB has concentrated on positioning itself to meet the demands it anticipated would arise from the new e-economy era. Intentia has developed its Movex product from a traditional ERP system to a complete e-collaboration solution that can manage all the demands of the new economy. Movex offers Intentia's customers the key to success, with its applications for customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), supply chain planning & execution (SCPE), partner relationship management (PRM), business performance management (BPM) and e-business. Intentia is well-positioned to respond to market needs when the "e" (electronic) evolves into "c" (collaboration), working hard to satisfy customers through its organization of more than 3,800 professionals serving in excess of 3,500 customers in over 40 countries around the world. Intentia is a public company traded on the Stockholm Stock Exchange (XSSE) under the symbol INT B.
Visit Intentia's Web site at www.intentia.com