San Jose, CA — April 2, 2003 — Agile Software Corporation, a provider of product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions, has acquired ProductFactory, a product portfolio management (PPM) company in a bid to bolster Agile's own PPM offering.
Financial details of the acquisition, which was completed on March 27, were not disclosed. Agile also has named ProductFactory's CEO, Edward Fields, to be senior vice president of marketing.
Agile said that the deal would reinforce its investment and commitment to its product portfolio management offering, Program Execution, a solution intended to give companies accelerated time-to-market, reduced costs and improved quality across the product lifecycle.
"Program and portfolio management is one of the fastest growing categories in the PLM market because companies are focused on doing more with less," said Jay Fulcher, president and COO, Agile. "This acquisition builds upon our relationship with ProductFactory and accelerates the launch of Agile's Program Execution."
Founded in 1999, ProductFactory offered phase-gate portfolio management solutions to the aerospace, automotive and high-tech industries. Agile licensed the ProductFactory solution in June 2002 to extend Agile's PLM footprint from concept to end-of-life with an expansion of Agile's product record, quality and cost management solutions.
Tim Minahan, vice president of Aberdeen Group's Supply Chain Research practice, said that the deal should be good for Agile's existing customers. "With manufacturers' design and product chains extended across an increasingly diverse and globally dispersed group of stakeholders and suppliers, program and portfolio management capabilities have become a must-have for success," Minahan said.
The deal also reaffirms Agile's commitment to providing solutions aimed at enhancing product innovation, reducing costs and speeding processes across the complete product lifecycle, Minahan added.
In a statement, Agile said that the appointment of Edward Fields to be senior vice president of marketing reflects the company's commitment to increase market awareness for its PLM offering. Fields will lead Agile's global product, industry and corporate marketing efforts.
Prior to his role as founder and CEO of ProductFactory, Fields held senior management positions in marketing and strategic alliances at Workgroup Technology Corporation and The Learning Company. He has been involved in the engineering, product data management and product lifecycle management market for more than a decade.
In the Agile statement, Fields said that his new employer would provide "the perfect environment for the ProductFactory team to continue developing and delivering product portfolio management solutions."
Financial details of the acquisition, which was completed on March 27, were not disclosed. Agile also has named ProductFactory's CEO, Edward Fields, to be senior vice president of marketing.
Agile said that the deal would reinforce its investment and commitment to its product portfolio management offering, Program Execution, a solution intended to give companies accelerated time-to-market, reduced costs and improved quality across the product lifecycle.
"Program and portfolio management is one of the fastest growing categories in the PLM market because companies are focused on doing more with less," said Jay Fulcher, president and COO, Agile. "This acquisition builds upon our relationship with ProductFactory and accelerates the launch of Agile's Program Execution."
Founded in 1999, ProductFactory offered phase-gate portfolio management solutions to the aerospace, automotive and high-tech industries. Agile licensed the ProductFactory solution in June 2002 to extend Agile's PLM footprint from concept to end-of-life with an expansion of Agile's product record, quality and cost management solutions.
Tim Minahan, vice president of Aberdeen Group's Supply Chain Research practice, said that the deal should be good for Agile's existing customers. "With manufacturers' design and product chains extended across an increasingly diverse and globally dispersed group of stakeholders and suppliers, program and portfolio management capabilities have become a must-have for success," Minahan said.
The deal also reaffirms Agile's commitment to providing solutions aimed at enhancing product innovation, reducing costs and speeding processes across the complete product lifecycle, Minahan added.
In a statement, Agile said that the appointment of Edward Fields to be senior vice president of marketing reflects the company's commitment to increase market awareness for its PLM offering. Fields will lead Agile's global product, industry and corporate marketing efforts.
Prior to his role as founder and CEO of ProductFactory, Fields held senior management positions in marketing and strategic alliances at Workgroup Technology Corporation and The Learning Company. He has been involved in the engineering, product data management and product lifecycle management market for more than a decade.
In the Agile statement, Fields said that his new employer would provide "the perfect environment for the ProductFactory team to continue developing and delivering product portfolio management solutions."
