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Zanzibar Goes Live for U.K. Public Sector
15 February 2006 Elcom International, Inc. ("Elcom" or the "Company") (OTC Bulletin Board: ELCO) and (AIM: ELC and ELCS), a leading international provider of remotely-hosted eProcurement and eMarketplace solutions, is pleased to announce that the U.K.'s Office of Government Commerce Buying Solutions (OGCbuying.solutions) and PA Consulting Group, have announced that Zanzibar, a 'Managed Service' for procurement, is now available to any public sector body in the United Kingdom. The Zanzibar Managed Service is a new web-enabled Purchase to Pay (P2P) and eMarketplace system operated by OGCbuying.solutions and delivered through an agreement with PA Shared Services Limited, a subsidiary within PA Consulting Group. Elcom Systems Limited, Elcom International, Inc.'s wholly-owned subsidiary in the U.K., is a sub-contractor to PA Shared Services Limited ("PASSL"), and provides the core eProcurement and eMarketplace technology platform and hosting services required to support Zanzibar.
Bruce Tindale, Chief Executive Officer, PA Consulting Group, said, "The Zanzibar Managed Service is an important component of the Government's strategy to deliver the procurement efficiency savings identified in Sir Peter Gershon's report 'Releasing Resources to the Front Line'. PA Consulting Group has long had a strong reputation for working with the public sector; our work on the Zanzibar Managed Service further underlines this. Alongside this, we have launched a new PA subsidiary, PA Shared Services Limited, to deliver the Zanzibar Managed Service."
Veera Johnson, PA's lead consultant on the Zanzibar project and member of PA's Management Group, added, "The Zanzibar Managed Service represents a major step towards delivering efficiencies across the whole UK public sector. It is an exciting project and a great product, which offers more than just a marketplace. The Zanzibar Managed Service includes an eProcurement hub and a range of management information components that will help public sector organisations make better value for money decisions now and in the future. Further, it offers the opportunity for public sector bodies to have easy access to collaborative contracts that offer attractive pricing arrangements. The consortium team, led by PA, is looking forward to realising these benefits for all Zanzibar's customers and suppliers."
Hugh Barrett, Chief Executive of OGCbuying.solutions, said, "The Zanzibar Managed Service revolutionises the way that the public sector does business. It saves both procurement process time and cost for the public sector and suppliers alike. Anyone that has internet access will be able to use this service. It means that buyers can browse catalogues and review electronic quotations quickly and easily at the click of a mouse."
Robert J. Crowell, Elcom International, Inc.'s Chairman, said, "We are very pleased to have the Zanzibar Managed Service in production, which includes our flagship eProcurement solution, PECOS, as well as the majority of the shared services encapsulated in the Zanzibar Hub. The initial reaction to the availability of the Zanzibar service has been very positive and we are pleased with the number of public sector bodies who have made commitments to join the program. I am optimistic that Zanzibar has the potential to become one of the largest eMarketplaces in the world in very short order."
PA Consulting Group is delivering Zanzibar through its new wholly-owned subsidiary, PA Shared Services Limited, in a consortium with Elcom Systems Limited, IMPAQ Business Solutions Ltd. and @UK PLC. In addition, Serco Group plc will be working in a strategic alliance with the consortium.
The Zanzibar Managed Service implementation is part of the contract awarded by the OGCbuying.solutions to PA Shared Service Limited in August 2005 for the provision of an eProcurement and eMarketplace service capable of being used by any public sector body in the United Kingdom. The Zanzibar Managed Service is an innovative system that enables public sector buyers and suppliers to link up over the internet and conduct highly interactive eCommerce through a single secure portal. Elcom is working with OGCbuying.solutions on the adoption of its vision of highly interactive online commerce between buyers and suppliers. The OGCbuying.solutions' proposed standard includes 14 XML business documents which are being considered by OASIS (Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards) for incorporation in UBL 2.0 and as such is expected to become a new standard for eCommerce over the Internet.
Based on a hub and spoke architecture, the Zanzibar Managed Service consists of a range of core commerce services that reside within the Zanzibar Portal (referred to as the Zanzibar Hub) and an optional Purchase to Pay (P2P) system. Zanzibar will enable subscribing public sector organizations to deliver value for money savings, independent of their existing investments in eProcurement systems, by leveraging the availability of shared services designed to address the high costs of managing catalogues, securely processing transactions or enabling suppliers to conduct business online. Zanzibar functionality includes a portal framework, supplier directory, catalogue content management and search engine and a transaction exchange which will be responsible for processing large numbers of orders, invoices and other important documents required to support highly interactive eCommerce. Under the terms of its contract with PASSL, Elcom provides the hosted eProcurement and eCommerce platform, and other sub-contractors deliver other services and PASSL provides systems integration and implementation services.
Additional information regarding the Zanzibar Service can be found by visiting: http://www.ogcbuyingsolutions.gov.uk/zanzibar/zanzibar.asp
Elcom Product Offerings
For detailed information on Elcom's PECOS(TM) technology and optional Dynamic Trading functionality, please visit Elcom's website at: http://www.elcominternational.com/products.htm.
About OGCBuying.solutions
OGCbuying.solutions is an Executive Agency of the Office of Government Commerce in the Treasury. OGCbuying.solutions' role is to deliver value for money gains for central civil government and the wider public sector through our dedicated, professional procurement service. It provides public sector bodies with access to more than 500,000 products and services under its portfolio of managed services and framework agreement.
Additional information is available at http://www.ogcbuyingsolutions.gov.uk.
About PA Shared Service Limited
PA Shared Services Limited (PASSL) is a wholly-owned subsidiary within PA Consulting Group. PASSL is the delivery vehicle for Zanzibar and builds on PA's strong track record in procurement and delivering e-government solutions. PA's experience ranges from developing guidance and offering advice, to managing large-scale procurement, sourcing and e-commerce projects on behalf of clients. As a result, PA has the depth of insight and understanding of procurement in both the public and private sectors. In summary, the services provided by PA range from developing strategies and business cases for eProcurement, through to delivering highly complex eProcurement solutions, including all aspects of systems development, organisational change and programme management. Additional information is available at http://www.paconsulting.com/sharedservices.
About PA Consulting Group
PA Consulting Group is a leading management, systems and technology consulting firm. Operating worldwide in more than 35 countries, PA draws on the knowledge and experience of 3,000 people, whose skills extend from the initial generation of ideas, insights, solutions and new technology, all the way through to detailed implementation. Additional information is available at http://www.paconsulting.com.
About Elcom International, Inc.
Elcom International, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: ELCO and AIM: ELC and ELCS), is an international B2B Commerce Service Provider offering affordable solutions for buyers, sellers and commerce communities to automate many or all of their procurement processes and purchase most or all of their goods and services in a 'private' eMarketplace system. PECOS, Elcom's remotely-hosted flagship solution, enables enterprises of all sizes to achieve the many benefits of eProcurement and eMarketplace functionality, with the system hosted by Elcom at its own data center, eliminating the burden and cost of in- house programming, IT infrastructure and ongoing catalog content and system management. More information is available from Elcom's integrated web site at: http://www.elcominternational.com.
STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release could include forward-looking statements or information. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, those with respect to the Company's objectives, plans and strategies set forth herein and those preceded by or that include the words "believes," "expects," "targets," "intends," "anticipates," "plans," or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the Company's expectations are, or will be, correct. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause the Company's future results to differ materially from those anticipated, including: (i) the possibility that the Company will have to raise additional working capital to fund operations during 2006 and the availability of any such funding to the Company; (ii) its history of ongoing operating losses; (iii) the substantial number of common shares issued in the Company's recent Regulation S issuance and the possible impact on the market for the Company's shares; (iv) the ability of the Company to perform under its contracts with Capgemini UK plc and PA Shared Services Limited ("PASSL"), a member of the PA Consulting group of companies; (v) the overall marketplace and clients' acceptance and usage of eCommerce software systems, eProcurement and eMarketplace solutions including demand therefor by both Scottish and U.K. public entities; (vi) the costs of building the Zanzibar eMarketplace system versus the revenues derived therefrom; (vii) the impact of competitive technologies, products and pricing, particularly given the substantially larger size and scale of certain competitors and potential competitors; (viii) control of expenses; (ix) the consequent results of operations given the aforementioned factors; and (x) other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's Annual Reports on Form 10-KSB, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-QSB and in its other SEC reports and statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update any of the information contained or referenced in this press release.
Company Contact:
Investor Relations
e-mail: invrel@elcom.com
Source: prnewswire
All trademarks and copyrighted information contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
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