CHICAGO -- June 19, 2000 - FindMRO.com, a provider of indirect materials sourcing and procurement solutions, and Commerx, a leading developer of collaborative eMarketplace supply chain solutions for industrial markets, today announced an alliance. The agreement provides users of Commerx PlasticsNet and Commerx Metals access to unlimited sourcing services for maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) supplies through FindMRO.com, a Grainger company. This new product sourcing offering was launched earlier this month.
“The depth of the sourcing services provided by FindMRO.com, combined with Commerx’s e-procurement, connectivity and logistics solutions, is a big part of our end-to-end collaborative eMarketplace strategy,” said Tim Stojka, chairman and CEO of Commerx. “We selected FindMRO.com because their product sourcing capability is exceptional and will provide an immediate benefit to our customers.”
Commerx PlasticsNet is the first vertical marketplace at Commerx to include the enhanced product sourcing capabilities. This new service will provide customers with access to FindMRO.com’s database of more than five million products from 12,000+ suppliers.
“We are all winners in this alliance,” said Ron Paulson, president, FindMRO.com. “Customers are able to off-load a time-consuming purchasing challenge—sourcing hard-to-find MRO products and services. Commerx provides more value for their customers by increasing its portfolio of solutions. FindMRO.com gains access to new customers by teaming up with a highly respected and innovative company.”
“The agreement between FindMRO.com and Commerx addresses the buyers’ and sellers’ needs for a simpler, more integrated e-business solution,” said Bob Segal, partner at Frank Lynn & Associates, a Chicago-based consulting and analyst firm. “This alliance is a great example of how leading Internet eMarketplaces can reshape business relationships and drive economic productivity.”
FindMRO.com (www.findmro.com),a Grainger company, is a leader in the B2B marketplace providing procurement solutions for hard-to-find maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) supplies. Leveraging over 7 years of sourcing experience, 12,000+ supplier relationships and comprehensive database content, FindMRO.com provides its customers a cost-effective way to find and procure MRO products via the Internet. In addition, this unique combination of capabilities allows for easy integration with all types of e-procurement solutions from Web portals to Enterprise Software Vendors (ESV).
W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW), with 1999 sales of $4.5 billion, is the leading North American provider of maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) supplies and related information to businesses and institutions. Grainger shares are traded on the New York and Chicago stock exchanges. For more information about Grainger, visit www.grainger.com.
Founded in 1995, Chicago-based Commerx is a leading provider of collaborative eMarketplace supply chain solutions that enable buyers and sellers in industrial markets to transact business on the Internet. Commerx develops, implements, integrates and hosts a suite of scalable software applications enabling users to procure direct and indirect materials critical to their operations. Commerx offers its users the ability to utilize and integrate supply chain and logistics solutions to streamline inefficient elements of their operations.