BT Syncordia Solutions Selects SMARTS to Significantly Reduce Time Spent On Network Management.

Business/Technology Editors

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 7, 2000

Further solidifying its position as the cornerstone for automated e-infrastructure management, System Management ARTS (SMARTS(R)) today announced that it has been selected by BT Syncordia Solutions for its award-winning INCHARGE(TM) root cause analysis solution. InCharge, which automatically locates network faults, promises to reduce the "mean time to repair" by up to 80 per cent, providing an increase in Syncordia Solutions' level of customer service, while reducing operating costs.

In an initial contract worth $1.6 million, SMARTS InCharge(TM) will minimize the impact of network infrastructure problems through real-time automated network analysis that instantly pinpoints the root cause of those problems.

Continuous availability of customer networks and related services are key objectives for Syncordia Solutions, the e-business and communications and solutions unit of BT. The InCharge(TM) solution will enable them to automate fault management within highly complex customer networks, a task which until now had been very operator-intensive.

"Syncordia Solutions has embarked on a major initiative to improve quality of service to our customers. By allowing us to enhance our current operational support systems, SMARTS technology will be a key component in the success of this project," explained Steve Malde, Head of Information Systems at Syncordia Solutions.

During a technical and commercial evaluation process, with particular emphasis on strong customer references, SMARTS was benchmarked against products from both Riversoft and Visual Networks. "SMARTS provided the solution that met our requirements," continued Malde.

Andrew Mallaband, Area Director, EMEA Operations at SMARTS, commented on the win, "A number of vendors now claim to offer `Root Cause Analysis' solutions but repeatedly, following thorough customer evaluations, only SMARTS InCharge(TM) delivers the goods. Syncordia Solutions was not only impressed with the out-of-the-box capabilities of InCharge(TM), but also the strategic opportunity that this product suite offers to further automate key business processes, deliver unique new services and in doing so gain significant competitive advantage."

Steve Malde continued, "As a strategic SMARTS development partner, Syncordia Solutions plans to rapidly enhance its existing customer services and develop new revenue generating services - and in doing so achieve important strategic business objectives."

Syncordia Solutions will also benefit from the sophisticated auto-discovery and graphical visualization capabilities that InCharge(TM) provides. It is the only system to accurately display cause / effect relationships between problems and symptoms. Because it automatically computes problem impacts, users can now instantly visualize not only root cause problems, but also their impacts on the rest of the infrastructure. This is consistent with SMARTS vision of providing complete Business Fault Management solutions.

About SMARTS

System Management ARTS (SMARTS) is the leading developer of automated network problem resolution software, maximizing availability and performance of e-business infrastructure through root-cause analysis. The company's out-of-the box, maintenance free, InCharge applications leverage patented Codebook Correlation Technology(TM) to automate problem diagnosis and impact analysis, in real-time. InCharge users reap the benefit of high network availability and performance, low total cost of ownership, and immediate business value while enhancing customer satisfaction, improved productivity, and dramatically reducing operational expenses. SMARTS customers include AT&T, MCI, Sprint, Bell Canada, Qwest, Bear Stearns, Capital One, Citigroup, First Data, DLJ Direct, Vanguard Group, Chubb, Weyerhauser, Marriott, Federal Express, Viacom, Ameritrade, Staples, and MarchFirst. For more information, call 1-877-2-SMARTS or visit the SMARTS web site at http://www.smarts.com.

About BT Syncordia Solutions

Syncordia Solutions is BT's e-business and communications solutions unit that provides solutions to help its clients optimize customer value in an IP-enabled world. It provides consultancy, e-business, e-CRM and network centric applications, which it delivers and manages on behalf of many of the world's largest and most respected organizations. With revenues in the region of (pound)1 billion, BT Syncordia Solutions is the largest provider of managed and outsourced network and IT solutions in the UK. It has more than 27,000 customers ranging from mid-sized companies to multi-national organizations in 92 countries across the globe.

SMARTS and InCharge are trademarks of System Management ARTS Incorporated. The InCharge products mentioned in this document are covered by pending applications and one or more of the following U.S. patents: 5,528,516 and 5,661,668. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.