LAS VEGAS, March 23, 1999 — Today at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG ’99 Construction and Construction Materials Exposition, Microsoft Corp. announced that leading independent software vendors (ISVs) have developed and plan to ship construction applications built on Microsoft® SQL Server
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7.0, most of which will be available by April 1999. The products developed include applications for project management, contract management, dispatch and scheduling, truck tracking, inventory, aggregates order entry and shipping, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and accounting.
“In an industry such as construction, where the daily workplace can vary from an office to a job site, the collection, management and sharing of information is critical to running a business efficiently,” said Gary Cooke, industry marketing manager for construction at Microsoft. “It’s exciting to see industry software vendors take advantage of SQL Server 7.0 to help construction companies utilize technology to its full potential in an easy and cost-effective manner.”
Vendors developing construction-specific solutions for SQL Server 7.0 include Alkon Corp., FAST Management Group, GEAC Computer Corporation Ltd., Management Computer Controls Inc. (MC 2 ), Meridian Project Systems Inc., Sage Software Inc., SAP AG, Solomon Software and WinEstimator Inc.
“We are utilizing the Windows® operating system platform for our Prolog Executive product, the first application to provide organizations managing multiple construction projects with the ability to centrally compile and report on all project-related documentation in a single multiproject database,” said John Bodrozic, president of Meridian Project Systems Inc. “Making this feat possible is Prolog Executive’s multitiered client/server design structure, developed with the latest object-oriented programming techniques and backed by the proven power of Microsoft SQL Server 7.0.”
SQL Server 7.0, a leading Microsoft Windows operating system-based database, brings business advantage and improved decision-making to all levels of an organization through the power of data warehousing and industry solutions as well as through its interoperability with Microsoft Office. Scalable for businesses and industry applications of all sizes, SQL Server 7.0 enables ISVs and customers to build and deploy construction solutions to effectively utilize and manage data throughout a corporation and remotely to incorporate multiple, geographically distributed project sites.
“In our PC environment, we consider Microsoft SQL Server the de facto database standard and Visual Basic® the development standard,” said Eric Simon, vice president of information technology at Brookfield Homes. “Using Microsoft SQL Server and Visual Basic gives Brookfield Homes better access to support and development resources.” Brookfield Homes uses an automated construction management system, based on Microsoft BackOffice® family technologies and Solomon IV for BackOffice, that simplifies data entry, reporting and researching, ultimately doubling employee productivity.
Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 is a defining release for Microsoft database products, building on the solid foundation established by SQL Server 6.5. As the most robust database for the
Windows operating system, SQL Server is the RDBMS of choice for a broad spectrum of corporate customers and ISVs building business applications. Customers’ needs and requirements have driven significant product innovations in ease of use, reliability and scalability, and data warehousing.
“Since construction materials companies vary considerably in size and typically have operations across many locations, we needed a very scalable, efficient, reliable and flexible foundation for our applications,” said Gregory A. Miller, president and CEO of Alkon Corp. “We are extremely pleased with SQL Server 7.0 as the basis for our enterprise solution, Alkon Enterprise Series. It not only fits the needs of our customers extremely well, but provides them with a high-performance platform at the lowest cost of ownership.”
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft, Windows, Visual Basic and BackOffice are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
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