Gatepoint Research Survey Reveals Pressing Need for New Systems to Manage and Strengthen...

Gatepoint Research Survey Reveals Pressing Need for New Systems to Manage and
Strengthen Demand-Supply Networks

Research Sponsored by E2open Cites Visibility, 'Clean Data' and the Ability to
Aggregate Spend Across Contract Manufacturers and Tier Two Suppliers as Top
Requirements for Efficiency

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 19 /PRNewswire/ -- E2open, the leading provider of
on-demand, multi-enterprise solutions that provide visibility and control
across global demand and supply networks, and Gatepoint Research, a leading
business-to-business research organization, today announced the results of a
Supply Chain Benchmark Survey focused on international procurement in the
context of outsourced manufacturing. The survey found that with the evolution
of supply chains into supply networks, brand owners require better systems to
improve visibility and control, data quality and buying efficiency through
consolidated procurement.

Gatepoint Research surveyed more than 1,100 executives including CIOs, CFOs
and supply chain executives from the following industries: High Technology
(including Consumer Electronics, Semiconductor & Components, and Computers &
Peripherals), Telecommunications Equipment Manufacturers, Aerospace & Defense,
and Industrial Manufacturing. Gatepoint asked respondents questions about
their level of outsourced manufacturing; percentage of procurement that is
internationally sourced; how many contract manufacturers are used; spend
aggregation across internal divisions and contract manufacturers; supplier
visibility rating; intentions for establishing an International Procurement
Center (IPC) to execute 'Buy-Sell' processes; and the systems in place to
ensure they can maximize margin by appropriately masking prices.

The survey findings demonstrated that more than half of respondents currently
do not have access to real-time supply chain information and seventy-five
percent lacked fully automated data collection and consolidation systems. In
addition, four out of five respondents have only partial or no visibility into
tier two component suppliers, thus hampering the ability to make informed
decisions and manage multi-tier supply chains cost effectively. Moreover, it's
not just visibility that is lacking but the ability to trigger action.

Another key finding was that while many companies have or plan to establish an
IPC to support 'Buy-Sell' processes (buy directly from component suppliers and
sell to the contract manufacturers/internal divisions), the ability to
confidently aggregate spending with one or more contract manufacturers and
component suppliers is limited.

The survey findings suggest that while a brand owner's primary procurement
objective is to reduce costs by leveraging spend across contract manufacturers
and/or internal business units, the lack of supply chain visibility for those
who have not implemented IPC often results in loss of control over cost
management. Those who have implemented IPC find it challenging to scale the
'Buy-Sell' process manually to achieve significant business value.

"The result is that operational inefficiencies remain rampant at a time when
cost savings are critical," said Desikan Madhavnavur, VP Product Management
for E2open. "Given the multi-tiered, multi-layered nature of today's
demand-supply networks, legacy systems are often ill-equipped to seize the
opportunity of reducing procurement cost and reduced component shortages at
contract manufacturers. As a result, they miss important opportunities to
improve buying efficiency and/or achieve potential tax savings from
efficiently running 'Buy-Sell' processes."

Companies that implement an IPC with the following capabilities will be in a
position to achieve competitive advantage:

-- Ability to execute 'Buy-Sell' processes in which IPC buys
directly from tier two component suppliers and sells to the contract
manufacturer, with tier two suppliers drop shipping components to the
contract manufacturer locations
-- Ability to negotiate better prices with tier two suppliers by
consolidating spend across multiple contract manufacturers/internal
units
-- Capability to execute and automate purchase order-based as well as
vendor managed inventory-based 'Buy-Sell' processes with the
contract manufacturers and tier two suppliers
-- Ability to better demand-supply visibility and control across the
multi-tier supply network involving various entities such as contract
manufacturers, tier two suppliers, third party logistics provider
hubs,
carriers/freight forwarders, et. al
-- Ability to "mask prices" to maximize brand owner margins and
drive greater price competitiveness
-- Ability to allocate demand in case of constrained supply
-- Shipment document management in a drop ship process

For more information about E2open visit www.E2open.com

About E2open, Inc.
E2open is the leading provider of on-demand, multi-enterprise solutions for
today's global demand and supply networks. The company delivers a working
business process including software, deployment, and operations that improves
visibility, control, responsiveness, and collaboration across multiple tiers
of customers, partners, and suppliers, resulting in major improvements across
all key demand and supply network performance metrics. Customers span a range
of industries and include The Boeing Company, Celestica, Cisco, Dell, Hitachi,
IBM, LG Electronics, LSI Corporation, Panasonic, Motorola, Seagate Technology,
Spansion, Vodafone, and Wistron. Deployed as an on-demand managed service that
easily connects with SAP, Oracle, and other ERP systems of record, E2open
delivers fast time to value in dramatically improving customer service and
profitability across extended business networks. Further information can be
found at www.E2open.com.

SOURCE E2open, Inc.

Margaret Hoerster, +1-312-329-3909, hoersterm@ruderfinn.com, for E2open, Inc.