SYMPHONY SYSTEMS ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH ASPEN TECHNOLOGY
Partnership Enables Symphony to Deliver Turnkey Productivity Solutions to Semiconductor
Industry
CAMPBELL, Calif., May 22, 2001 - Symphony Systems, a leading supplier of network-based applications and open-architecture software solutions for the semiconductor industry, today announced a partnership agreement with Aspen Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: AZPN), the leading supplier of integrated solutions to the process industries, in which Symphony will utilize AspenTech's proven real-time database in its newly introduced suite of productivity solutions, the EPM™ Equipment Productivity Manager.
The partnership agreement names Symphony as the exclusive Value Added Reseller (VAR) of AspenTech's InfoPlus.21™ database to the semiconductor industry, which includes end-users, equipment makers, sub-system providers and other software companies. This agreement expands upon a strategic partnership the two companies developed in 1999.
Symphony has integrated AspenTech's process optimization technology into its EPM suite to create a compelling and comprehensive productivity solution that delivers connectivity, automated data collection, data warehousing and advanced analysis capabilities. Symphony provides the connectivity and data management infrastructure, while AspenTech brings the real-time database and related applications to the EPM suite. Symphony combines these features in a flexible, open, object based web-enabled framework, which allows the easy integration of custom and best-of-breed applications for Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), failure analysis, spare parts management and enterprise resource management.
"We are excited to have a value added partner that will help expand our presence in the semiconductor industry," said Larry Evans, Chairman and CEO of AspenTech. "Our leading production optimization solutions, including information management and production control technologies, can create significant value for companies in the high-tech and semiconductor industries. We are committed to bringing that value to a growing number of customers in these industries both directly, and in conjunction with strategic partners such as Symphony."
The EPM delivers significant return on investment by dramatically improving equipment performance. This means higher value equipment from Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and more output for chipmakers. For OEMs, the EPM's e-diagnostics and analysis applications provide software tools that lower support and maintenance expenses. Savings can be realized in a variety of ways, including decreased mean time to repair (MTTR) and less frequent travel for field engineers. For end-users, the product provides a fab-wide data collection and management system that can be deployed across a variety of tools and tool sets. Also, Symphony's connectivity solution provides an excellent platform for implementing Advanced Process Control (APC), e-diagnostics, and remote access applications. Because the solution is web-based and fully networkable, engineers can access any data from their desktops and deploy multiple applications to the tools to solve specific problems.
"The application of software solutions to improve tool productivity is a major initiative in the semiconductor industry and Symphony is leading the way in implementing the products and services to make this a reality," said Dr. Keith Bennett, Symphony Chairman and CEO. "With its advanced data applications, AspenTech provides a key component in our overall offering, taking us one step further toward our vision to deliver turnkey equipment productivity solutions. We have already installed the EPM at principal OEMs and end-users, and the product is being met with enthusiastic acceptance, due to its capabilities and its role as the industry's first truly open and web-enabled architecture."
About AspenTech
Aspen Technology, Inc is the leading supplier of integrated software and solutions to the $6 trillion process industries. The company's ProfitAdvantage solution enables companies to identify and maximize profit opportunities throughout their entire value chain - from the supply of raw materials, through the production of goods, to the delivery of final products to customers. ProfitAdvantage encompasses engineering, manufacturing, supply chain and e-business collaboration technologies, providing the tools that enable manufacturers to design, optimize and execute business processes in real time. Over 1,200 leading process companies already rely on AspenTech's 20 years of process industry experience to increase revenues, reduce costs and improve capital efficiency. AspenTech's customers include: Air Liquide, AstraZeneca, Bayer, BASF, BP, Chevron, Dow Chemical, DuPont, Equistar, Exxon Mobil, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Mitsubishi Chemical, and Unilever. For more information, visit www.aspentech.com.
About Symphony Systems
Founded in 1997, Symphony uses its network-based tool connectivity infrastructure and suite of software services to seamlessly connect people with new and existing equipment within an entire supply chain, creating a web-based community of equipment, equipment users, equipment suppliers, parts and consumables suppliers, and application software providers, in real time. The result is a dynamic, highly secure resource management environment that optimizes the productivity of mission-critical capital equipment. More information can be found on www.symphony-systems.com.