BuildPoint Announces Transactional Catalog For Direct Purchase of Construction Materials Online.

Business Editors

ANAHEIM, Calif.,A/E/C Systems 2000--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 7, 2000

1.6 Million Items Available From Major Suppliers;

Specialized Sections Feature Concrete and Electrical Products

BuildPoint Corporation, the leading e-commerce company for the construction industry, today announced a direct-purchase online catalog for the commercial construction industry, featuring 1.6 million items from major manufacturers and suppliers nationwide including WESCO, Turtle & Hughes, Electric Supply Company, Fastenal Company, RMC Group, and U.S. Concrete. The BuildPoint catalog, the industry's first transactional catalog from an online marketplace, saves contractors and suppliers time and money by expediting purchasing activities and streamlining business processes.

The catalog features specialized sections that include more than 35,000 concrete mixes and more than 1.6 million electrical, mechanical, and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) transactional items. By initially focusing on four of the 16 Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) construction material divisions, BuildPoint has developed trade procurement capabilities that meet the specific needs of contractors in those areas. Moving forward, BuildPoint will work with suppliers nationwide to integrate their content into the BuildPoint catalog, expanding it to include additional construction divisions.

The BuildPoint Catalog - Click and Buy Online

The BuildPoint catalog is integrated into BuildPoint's online procurement application. For suppliers, the catalog provides a dynamic channel to a growing online community of contractors at the point when they are going to buy, which reduces marketing and sales costs as well as maximizes supplier visibility. For contractors, the catalog offers a comprehensive e-commerce solution to source products, benefit from negotiated prices, and purchase materials online. Using the catalog, contractors can conduct product searches, select the items they wish to purchase, and create an electronic, reusable product list. With the product list, they can either create a request for quote (RFQ) that is sent to selected suppliers, or send direct purchase orders (PO) automatically routed to suppliers with pricing information from the catalog.

"The construction industry will benefit greatly from an online catalog through decreased procurement process costs and a reduction in costs associated with miscommunication errors such as incorrect products delivered to the job site, order delays, and account reconciliation difficulties," said Heather Ashton, Director, E-Business Services, Hurwitz Group, Inc. "Because the catalog reduces mundane tasks to a minimum, contractors and suppliers are free to work on more valuable business issues, making contractors more profitable and productive, and allowing suppliers to deliver higher levels of customer service and other value-added services such as application development. Hurwitz Group believes that industry specific catalogs with specialized content are one of the most critical factors to successful e-marketplaces."

"The BuildPoint catalog brings together our large community of contractors with multiple suppliers in order to automate the flow of business between buyers and sellers," said Jim Piraino, president and chief executive officer of BuildPoint Corp. "As a key addition to our procurement application that replaces inefficient, paper-based procurement processes, the BuildPoint catalog reinforces our commitment to providing value to the entire construction supply chain."

Key Benefits to the Contractor:

The catalog allows contractors to submit accurate and timely purchase orders to suppliers on the BuildPoint system.

    --  Easy, contractor-friendly search procedures and product
        information retrieval

    --  Frequently updated product information

    --  Automatic distribution of orders to appropriate suppliers,
        24x7

    --  Ability to generate RFQs and POs and create reusable product
        lists.

    --  Job specific and customer specific pricing that supports the
        way contractors and suppliers do business today

    --  Electronic process for tracking all transactions over
        BuildPoint.com

Key Benefits to the Seller:

Manufacturers and distributors can integrate their catalog content into BuildPoint's catalog, providing their customers with a centralized place to purchase materials online.

    -- Reduce marketing costs and maximize online visibility

    -- Access to a large community of contractors at the point of
       purchase

    -- Electronic PO process reduces order errors, saving suppliers
       time and money

    -- Up-to-date product information through a live, well-maintained
       database

    -- Integration with BuildPoint's online procurement application
       provides a complete e-commerce solution that support entire
       procurement process

"Fastenal continues to offer its products online and BuildPoint offers us catalog functionality and access to a large community of contractors," says Brian Fihn, E-Business Development Manager at the Fastenal Company. "Working with BuildPoint to integrate our complete product offering, from fasteners and tools to electrical, welding, and most recently safety supplies, Fastenal will electronically receive purchase orders through BuildPoint.com and continue to fulfill the orders from its 860 branch locations in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico."

About BuildPoint Corporation

BuildPoint Corporation, the leading e-commerce company for the $3.2 trillion construction industry, provides fast, reliable and secure e-commerce applications for the industry's largest community of contractors. BuildPoint.comSM is a leading contractor's marketplace that allows buyers and sellers to negotiate for and procure construction products and services online; provides bid solicitation management and lead generation; and offers access to financial services including insurance and lending.

More than 35,000 member companies transact business over BuildPoint.com, including more than 75 of the Engineering News Record's Top 400 General Contractors.

BuildPoint is financially backed by construction.com, part of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Chase Capital Partners, RMC Group, SAP Ventures, Techfund Capital, Thomas Weisel Partners, and Vortex Partners. The company is headquartered in Redwood City, Calif., with sales offices nationwide. For more information on BuildPoint, visit www.buildpoint.com or send e-mail to [e-mail].