ECR, 24-26th May, Hall 12, Stand F02, Brussels Expo — GXS, a leading provider of B2B integration solutions, announced today that Thermos® will deploy GXS solutions to drive end-to-end supply chain process visibility and data synchronisation with Thermos’ worldwide network of retail trading partners.

As part of Thermos’ ongoing initiative to integrate e-business systems and eliminate inefficiencies in its supply chain, the manufacturer # whose name is synonymous with lunch boxes, beverage containers and coolers # is meeting the requirements of its major retail partners, including Wal-Mart, Target, Walgreen’s, Toys R Us and Sears, with a faster, more customised service for order placement, order tracking and targeted program marketing. Thermos’ distribution network spans the world, comprised of several thousand retail partners in 102 countries. Celebrating its 100-year anniversary this year, Thermos has been at the forefront of innovation # offering its retailers a brand that consumers recognise and trust.

Per the terms of the agreement, Thermos will deploy GXS Enterprise System™, a powerful B2B integration solution, and Application Integrator™, a scalable mapping and translation tool for electronic data interchange (EDI). Coupled with Quick Connect™ for item data synchronisation, GXS gives Thermos a robust platform to support its strategic real-time B2B collaboration objectives.

“Global eXchange Services will help Thermos drive best-in-class data synchronisation, data exchange and EDI, as well as UCCnet™ standards compliance with our trading partners,” said Dr. Alex Huang, chief financial officer of Thermos. “We chose the company as one of our key e-business partners because of its ability to provide us with a complete end-to-end solution that integrates our internal applications, while helping us conduct more efficient business transactions and targeted marketing programs. By continuing to optimise our customer satisfaction and order processing efficiency, we’ll continue to develop even deeper relationships within our retailer community.”

Operating one of the largest B2B e-commerce networks in the world, GXS helps manage one billion transactions annually for more than 30,000 customers around the world. It provides comprehensive, cost-effective hosted or behind-the-firewall software solutions to meet the requirements of businesses of any size, and trading communities around the world. Thermos adds to the Company’s list of manufacturing and retailing customers that include Target, Costco, Liz Claiborne, JC Penney, Eastman Kodak, DaimlerChrysler and Consignia.

Thermos recently deployed the Oracle e-Business Suite for enterprise resource planning (ERP) and the Oracle e-Commerce Gateway. Thermos’ agreement with GXS complements this initiative by providing end-to-end supply chain process visibility and data synchronisation between the retailer and its largest external trading partners, as well as with UCCnet™ and other global product registry services.

“GXS and Thermos share a common vision for how consumer product goods manufacturers and retailers can simplify and improve business processes to drive increased profitability, reduce costs and expedite time to shelf for new products,” said Bobby Patrick, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Global eXchange Services. “We’re pleased to be selected by Thermos to help create an unparalleled solution for data synchronisation, data integration and EDI.”

Patrick added, “This deployment also highlights our product integration with Oracle’s ERP and e-business offerings. GXS products extend the usefulness of the important business data contained in those systems, presenting compelling benefits for companies that are deploying Oracle applications.”

An End-to-End Solution for Data Exchange and synchronisation
GXS’ Enterprise System is a multi-purpose integration broker that links diverse business applications. It handles messaging between an organisation’s external business partners and across internal applications, regardless of data format. Application Integrator is a mapping and translation tool for exchanging business documents in different electronic formats with trading partners or internal applications.

Enterprise System’s modular architecture is powered by a message-routing engine that supports XML, all major EDI standards and proprietary formats, ensuring scalable, flexible processing. Providing an intelligent adapter to link with Thermos’ Oracle ERP system, Enterprise System delivers a single system for auditing and tracking transactions, provides business information flows and automates system administration tasks.

Embracing data synchronisation as the foundation for improved data quality and supply chain efficiencies, Thermos is also using GXS Quick Connect. It provides an easy-to-implement data synchronisation solution to synchronise item information with retail trading partners through UCCnet™ services. Quick Connect also provides flexible data import capabilities, data staging, comprehensive workflow options, a web-based user interface, and pre-built support for UCCnet™ data attributes and associated compliance validations.

Global eXchange Services completed in February its acquisition of HAHT Commerce, an award-winning provider of demand chain management applications. Earning Thermos as a customer reflects execution on GXS’ strategy to provide businesses of all sizes with the industry’s most comprehensive software and solutions for B2B integration, data synchronisation and collaboration with global trading partners.

About Thermos
Since 1904, the Thermos name has been synonymous with unique solutions for keeping food and beverages hot, cold and fresh. Today, Thermos is a global manufacturer of an expanding range of innovative insulated products including food and beverage containers, soft coolers and lunch kits, each one fueled by hotter, cooler and fresher thinking. To find out more about Thermos, visit www.thermos.com.

About GXS
GXS is a leading global provider of B2B e-commerce solutions that simplify and enhance business process integration and collaboration. Organisations worldwide, including more than 75 percent of the Fortune 500, leverage GXS Trading Grid® to achieve balance between supply and demand. Active in the global standards arena, GXS solutions enable customers both large and small, to connect with global partners, synchronise product information, optimise inventory levels and demand forecasts, and accelerate the execution of supply chains.

Headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., GXS provides sales and support to businesses and their partners worldwide. For more information about GXS visit www.gxs.co.uk.