Adexa and Essentus Selected By Tropical Sportswear As Core Supply Chain Management Solution; Solutions to Allow TSI to Deliver Apparel Products More Efficiently and Cost Effectively.

Business Editors

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 26, 2000

Adexa(TM), Inc. (formerly Paragon Management Systems), a leading provider of collaborative planning solutions critical to e-business, and Essentus, the leading provider of business-to-business commerce software solutions, services and business improvement processes, today announced that Tropical Sportswear International Corporation (TSI) (NASDAQ:TSIC), has signed an agreement to use Adexa's iCollaboration and Essentus' Sourcing and Demand Management applications as its core supply chain management solution worldwide.

A dominant leader and innovator within the garment industry, TSI was looking for an automated system whose GUI and functionality were the best available on the market today. Prior to the selection of Adexa and Essentus applications, the company had used in-house systems to manage inventory planning and shipping. TSI required a more sophisticated system that would also streamline its current processes to enable a more efficient and affordable manner of delivering products to customers.

"As a result of our recent alliance with Essentus, TSI is our first step into the garment industry and we look forward to continuing to work with Essentus on future projects," said Dr. K. Cyrus Hadavi, president and CEO of Adexa, Inc. "We are honored that TSI, after evaluating other solutions, selected Adexa's iCollaboration as their core supply chain management solution."

TSI will utilize Adexa's collaborative planning software and integrate it with the supply chain management software from Essentus, for core operating processes including customer order management production and purchasing. Both Adexa and Essentus software will replace legacy systems and will utilize an Oracle database in a Microsoft NT(R) operating system environment.

"Adexa and Essentus' applications, as well as their business proposition, best fit our company's mission to profitably deliver apparel products faster, better and cheaper than anyone else in the world," said Brent Pulsipher, executive vice president and COO of TSI. "We are dedicated to remaining a leading-edge company and our use of this technology reflects that."

"This significant win demonstrates our ability to engage our new alliance partners at today's rapid business pace," said Paul Butare, chairman and chief executive officer of Essentus. "TSI is an example of how Essentus and Adexa can provide companies with integration that results in faster time-to-value."

TSI has begun implementation of the complete enterprise system in its plants within the United States, and upon completion, will target its manufacturing plants worldwide. The company intends to go live with the solution by Q4.

About TSI

Tropical Sportswear Int'l Corporation markets and manufactures branded and private brand men's and women's casual and dress sportswear through major retail distribution channels including department and specialty stores. Major owned brands include Savane(R), Farah(R), Bay to Bay(R), Flyers(TM), The Original Khaki Co.(R), Two Pepper(R), and Authentic Chino Casuals(R). Licensed brands include Bill Blass(R), John Henry(R), and Van Heusen(R). TSI distinguishes itself by providing major retailers with comprehensive brand management programs and uses advanced technology to provide retailers with customer, product and market analyses; apparel design; and merchandising consulting and inventory forecasting with a focus on return on investment.

About Essentus

Essentus delivers business-to-business commerce software solutions, services and business improvement processes designed to create value to retailers and manufacturers in the softgoods supply chain. Their proven solutions are the essential component that make up the business backbone of the fast changing fashion industry and are specifically designed for companies to derive greater value across their organizations and between business partners. Over 300 companies worldwide have taken advantage of their advanced collaboration, hosted applications services and supply chain management technologies. For further information, please visit their web site at http://www.essentus.com/

About Adexa

Headquartered in Los Angeles with sales and support offices worldwide, Adexa, Inc. (formerly Paragon Management Systems) is a leading provider of collaborative commerce solutions critical to e-business. Adexa's collaborative planning solution, iCollaboration, enables companies and trading exchanges to intelligently collaborate with trading partners via the Internet, improving profitability and customer responsiveness. Adexa's software and professional services enhance the value of enterprise applications and reflect the company's unmatched understanding of, and experience in solving, the unique business needs of its customers. iCollaboration is used by leading companies around the world, including General Motors, Hitachi, UMC Group, Milliken and Company, Xerox, Rowe Furniture, Lucent Technologies, Philips Components and Toshiba. To learn more about Adexa and its solutions, please visit www.adexa.com.