White Plains, NY and Burlington, MA June, 21, 2001 IBM and Enigma Inc. today announced a strategic alliance designed to globally deliver e-business solutions for aftermarket content, commerce and collaboration to manufacturing industries. Aftermarket content includes all technical information and services that follow any product after its original sale.
The joint offering helps manufacturers build integrated support chains by combining product information with e-commerce and decision-support systems. Such integrated chains are used to improve customer relationships, increase aftermarket services and boost spare parts revenue.
By using a Web-based system to combine thousands of pages of maintenance manuals, parts illustrations, service bulletins and parts catalogs into extensible applications, manufacturers provide their customers and channel partners with an e-business platform that improves equipment maintenance and drives additional spare parts sales. The combination of IBM and Enigma solutions gives manufacturers and operators of high-value equipment shared access to the product support information that enables them to service their revenue-producing assets more effectively and efficiently. This results in less downtime and improved field staff productivity.
The combined solution also provides collaboration and transaction capabilities that support post-sale business processes such as order management, warranty management, channel management, shop-floor task execution and inventory management.
The strategic alliance covers multiple vertical markets, such as aerospace, automotive and electronics, and addresses the global 2000 industrial firms where significant post-sale support opportunities exist. Currently, Enigma's content, commerce and collaboration solutions are used by such companies as GE Aircraft Engines, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, Cummins Engines and Delta Air Lines.
In an AMR Research Alert on Manufacturing E-Business, analyst Mike Burkett notes, "In the past, OEMs focused on product manufacturing, leaving aftermarket service to third-party Independent Service Organizations (ISOs). Now OEMs see aftermarket service and maintenance, repair and operating supply (MRO) as a major opportunity to grow revenue. They are now leasing products and taking responsibility for lifecycle maintenance and service. Enigma is well-positioned to allow OEMs to manage product content beyond manufacture and throughout the product's service life."
Jonathan Yaron, CEO of Enigma said, "IBM has consistently offered the innovative technologies and services needed to support the most demanding e-business applications. These solutions are crucial to our customers' abilities to deploy mission-critical e-business offerings across the aftermarket space. We are committed to offering more e-business solutions with IBM than any of our competitors, and we will use this new initiative to bring even stronger products to our global customer base."
