BigMachines.com Selects webMethods B2B as Business-to-Business Integration Infrastructure for its Internet Sales Channel Offering.

Business Editors/High Tech Writers

FOSTER CITY, Calif. and MUNICH, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 24, 2000

XML Integration Enables Seamless Connection to Existing Enterprise

Technologies and With Other eMarketplaces

BigMachines.com(TM), dedicated to revolutionizing the buying and selling of industrial machinery via the Internet, today announced that it has selected webMethods, Inc. (Nasdaq: WEBM), the leading provider of business-to-business integration (B2Bi) solutions, to provide the B2Bi infrastructure for the company's Internet Sales Channel offering. Under the terms of the agreement, BigMachines.com will integrate webMethods B2B(TM) with the BigMachines.com eBusiness for Engineered Systems (EES) solution, expanding on its solution to provide its customers with a B2Bi solution that supports all open standards and protocols of the Internet.

Incorporating webMethods B2B into the BigMachines.com Internet Sales Channel(TM) solution enables seamless, rapid integration of the BigMachines.com customized eSales tool and the BigMachines.com Marketplace with a customer's back-end ERP system, such as SAP(R), Baan(R), Oracle(R) and Peoplesoft(R). webMethods B2B will also enable BigMachines.com to effectively connect global machinery manufacturers to other B2B e-Marketplaces and to procurement hubs powered by Ariba and Commerce One, creating an efficient, interconnected business world. Buyers of engineered systems may choose to order directly from the seller via the BigMachines.com eSales tool, or via the BigMachines.com Marketplace(TM), other eMarketplaces, or procurement hubs, with the assurance that the order will be automatically and accurately routed to the seller's internal systems.

"The industrial machinery arena is a very complex one - Through webMethods B2B, we will provide our customers with real-time order processing benefits and rapid implementation times," said Godard Abel, co-founder and CEO of BigMachines.com. "By working with the market leader in B2B integration, we can allow our customers to communicate more efficiently and accurately, integrating their internal systems and easily connecting them to their external partners."

"BigMachines.com understands the need for companies to conduct business-to-business over the Internet with minimal stress to corporate resources and existing technology infrastructure," said Phillip Merrick, president and CEO of webMethods. "Our business-to-business integration capabilities, combined with their unique configuration technology, will offer BigMachines.com customers with a scaleable solution that supports all B2B standards and protocols, including XML."

As a part of the agreement, webMethods will also work closely with BigMachines.com for joint marketing purposes. On July 24th BigMachines.com, Idiom and webMethods are co-sponsoring the eBusiness for Engineered Systems (EES) Workshop, a forum for buyers and sellers of industrial machinery to understand how the Internet will dramatically impact their industry. For more information visit www.bigmachines.com.

About webMethods, Inc.

webMethods, Inc. (Nasdaq: WEBM) is the leading provider of software solutions for business-to-business integration (B2Bi). Leveraging the open standards of the Internet, the award-winning webMethods B2B(TM) family of products provides the B2Bi infrastructure that enables Global 2000 companies and B2B marketplaces to connect customers, suppliers and partners to form real-time B2B trading networks. webMethods B2B allows companies to create new revenue opportunities, strengthen relationships with customers and substantially reduce supply chain inefficiencies.

Founded in 1996, webMethods is based in Fairfax, Va., with offices across the U.S. and Europe. webMethods has more than 160 customers worldwide-from Global 2000 leaders such as Dell (Nasdaq: Dell), Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN), Lucent Technologies (NYSE: LU) and Grainger (NYSE: GWW) to major B2B marketplaces like ChemConnect, e-STEEL and Ventro (Nasdaq: VNTR). webMethods' strategic partners include Ariba (Nasdaq: ARBA), Commerce One (Nasdaq: CMRC), Deloitte Consulting, EDS (NYSE: EDS), i2 Technologies (Nasdaq: ITWO), KPMG Consulting, Microsoft Corp.(Nasdaq: MSFT), Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL), Sterling Commerce and SAP AG (NYSE: SAP). More information about the company can be found at www.webMethods.com.

About BigMachines.com, Inc. and BigMachines.com AG

As the leader in eBusiness for Engineered Systems (EES), BigMachines.com is revolutionizing the buying and selling of industrial machinery via the Internet, taking B2B commerce beyond commodities and standard catalog items. BigMachines.com provides Internet technology to select and configure industrial machinery based on engineering requirements integrated with an end-to-end eBusiness engine. BigMachines.com is a global company, incorporated in the U.S. as BigMachines.com Inc. and in Europe as BigMachines.com AG. The company has brought together a unique combination of Internet software developers and machinery engineers from around the world, with locations in Silicon Valley, New York, Chicago and Munich. BigMachines.com's customers are leading fluid machinery companies, including KSB AG, Europe's largest pump and valve manufacturer and ABEL Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Roper Industries (NYSE: ROP). BigMachines.com also has strategic alliances with leading technology companies, including Ariba, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARBA).

Note to Editors: BigMachines.com, the BigMachines.com logo, the BigMachines.com Internet Sales Channel and the BigMachines.com Marketplace are trademarks of BigMachines.com, Inc. webMethods and webMethods B2B are trademarks of webMethods, Inc. All other company and product names are property of their respective owners. All other product or service names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

This press release contains various remarks about the future expectations, plans and prospects of webMethods that constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The actual results of webMethods may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including those discussed in the Risk Factors section of webMethods' recent Registration Statement on Form S-4 and the company's annual report on form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 2000, which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.