BuildNet Continues to Gather Support From the Federated Associations of the National Lumber & Building Materials Dealers Association.

Business Editors/High Tech Writers

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 3, 2001

10 NLBMDA Federates Endorsing BuildNet as Supply Chain Solution for

the Lumber and Building Materials Industry

BuildNet, Inc., a leading provider of supply chain-wide information synchronization for the $800 billion annual U.S. construction industry, today announced that to date 10 of the 21 Federated Associations that make-up the National Lumber & Building Materials Dealers Association (NLBMDA), are currently endorsing BuildNet as the supply chain solution for its members.

These endorsements are an integral part of BuildNet's goal of industry-wide adoption of information synchronization.

Along with this endorsement, the 10 NLBMDA Federates are helping to drive adoption of BuildNet's supply chain-wide information synchronization solutions and to provide public endorsements of its benefits to its membership. The Federated Associations are: Illinois Lumber & Material Dealers Association, Inc., Indiana Lumber & Building Supply Association, Mountain States Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association, New Jersey Lumber and Building Materials Association, Northeastern Retail Lumber Association, Northwestern Lumber Association, Ohio Lumberman's Association, Southern Building Material Association, Western Building Material Association, and Wisconsin Retail Lumber Association.

"BuildNet understands that the building materials supply chain has been built on local relationships between dealers and contractors," said Nathan Morton, BuildNet CEO. "So, we're pleased to see that these Federated Associations of NLBMDA are recognizing BuildNet's ability to automate data exchanges in the supply chain without disrupting the integrity of individual dealer-to-contractor relationships."

BuildNet is currently rolling out supply chain connectivity in four geographical regions across the U.S. These are Texas, Florida and the metro regions of Atlanta and Washington D.C. BuildNet is providing dealer chains and their contractor customers with BuildNet technology and software to access and process transactions directly through back-office systems and Web interfaces. Buyers and sellers using BuildNet-Enabled systems can exchange requests for quotes, purchase orders, and invoices, in real time, seamlessly, across dissimilar computer platforms and software systems.

BuildNet's supply chain-wide information synchronization solution includes products and services which add efficiencies, streamline demand and supply chain processes, and synchronize information exchanges among different links in the supply chain. BuildNet's solutions aim to reduce costs and delivery lead times, and increase contractor speed-to-market in the construction industry. Supply chain synchronization seamlessly integrates critical business information across different computer platforms, software systems and companies.

About BuildNet, Inc.

BuildNet, Inc., located in Research Triangle Park, N.C., is a leading provider of supply chain-wide information synchronization for the $800 billion U.S. construction industry. BuildNet offers information synchronization through its Internet-based transactions, its widely-used enterprise resource planning and project management software systems, its Portal Group, and its Web site, BuildNet.com, which delivers electronic catalogs, construction-related applications, business intelligence, and financial services. BuildNet also allows users to engage in integrated e-commerce with any other BuildNet-enabled user or allied trading partners, as the Company automates and synchronizes their key business activities, including scheduling, bid management, collaboration, procurement, and logistics. BuildNet also provides connectivity solutions for each link in the supply chain, enabling the right products and services to be delivered to the right places at the right times and at the lowest possible cost, a much-needed service in the highly-fragmented construction industry.

BuildNet provides the deepest domain expertise in the construction industry and presently has thousands of customers implementing its applications. Its aggregated software customer base among home building contractors alone is over 60% of U.S. single-family home closings. Its dealer/distributor systems, provide by BuildNet subsidiary, NxTrend, are used today by 86,000 users within 900 local and national businesses, including three of the nation's top ten construction suppliers; four of the nation's top ten electrical product distributors; and three of the nation's top ten wholesalers of plumbing and HVAC products. BuildNet's warranty claims company, KPI, provides electronic warranty claims services, and BuildNet's Portal Group optimizes the supply chain using an Open Commerce Server transaction engine that simplifies the transaction flow for all members of the industrial distribution, PHAC, electrical distribution, and contractor communities, as it provides three levels of back-office enablement, including e-mail or fax, EDI or batch file transmissions, and XML communications. For more information about BuildNet, visit www.buildnet.com .