-- Implementation Cited for Cost & Time Savings -- SANTA CLARA, CA -- September 26, 2002 -- Aberdeen Group, a leading market analysis organization, has selected TSO's implementation of Noosh as one of the most successful in automating the purchase of print in order to control costs, streamline processes, and enhance responsiveness. The finding was part of Aberdeen's recently published report, "Best Practices in Online Services Procurement," available at http://www.aberdeen.com/ab_company/about/about.htm. Aberdeen examined over 30 implementations, categorizing them into one of three areas: print, travel, and contract labor. The evaluations performed by Aberdeen were based on multiple metrics including usage, spending volume, process efficiencies, cost savings, and additional qualitative benefits. TSO (the Stationery Office) is one of Europe's leading publishing services companies, publishing around 13,000 books, CD-ROMs, and multi-media products every year for its clients. In order to bring more transparency to the process and to streamline workflow to make sure projects were priced and processed correctly, TSO deployed Noosh last year. The Noosh collaborative platform has brought TSO that visibility and streamlined processes, reducing the risk of the company paying print premiums, with both hard and soft cost savings as a result. "To run a process successfully requires all the elements of the workflow to be coordinated including those that fall outside the area of supply chain responsibility," said Keith Burbage, Managing Director of TSO Supply Chain Services. "To do this requires process interconnectivity, process visibility, process accountability. Noosh does this by organizing the major process elements in a logical way regardless of company boundaries." "Web-based OSP solutions like Noosh focus on the complexity of services and extend traditional e-Procurement solutions to help organizations manage more of their total indirect spend," said Christa Degnan, senior analyst, Supply Chain Research at Aberdeen. "One of the key lessons learned from TSO's deployment of Noosh is how they're able to monitor and sustain savings, a best practice for all organizations to emulate."