Cadre introduces VantageTeam for Informix; Only modeling tool suite to generate NewEra & INFORMIX-4GL applications.

PROVIDENCE, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 7, 1995--Cadre Technologies Inc. and Informix Software Inc. today announced an integrated solution, VantageTeam for Informix, a complete model-driven development environment for generating and maintaining Informix-based enterprise client-server applications.

VantageTeam is a tool suite that supports the leading analysis and design approaches to application development, including popular object-oriented and structured methods, as well as all major relational database management systems and languages.

With VantageTeam for Informix, today's IS professional developers have a robust solution that complements their Informix-based application development environment. The inherent scalability of Informix-based systems is now further leveraged by this robust environment that not only encourages reuse, but also creates the platform for managing the inherent dynamics of today's global businesses.

The VantageTeam for Informix toolset offers complete and customizable INFORMIX - NewEra and INFORMIX-4GL application generation as well as Informix database schema generation. The tools provide a complete graphical modeling environment for analyzing, designing and building information systems. The tools easily manage large and complex development environments through a multi-user Informix-based repository. VantageTeam for Informix further supports the corporate development environment by providing automation for project management and documentation and extensibility for custom integration of other development tools.

"VantageTeam for Informix represents a complete and unique model-to-code OO development environment for enterprise-wide, client/server applications," said Mory Bahar, Cadre's vice president of marketing. "The features and capabilities of VantageTeam for Informix combine Cadre's object-oriented modeling expertise with support for Informix's robust database system and state-of-the-art programming languages, including NewEra."

"VantageTeam for Informix extends the productivity of the NewEra development environment by providing graphical modeling capabilities that will enable our customers to implement sophisticated, business-critical applications that today's competitive environment demands," said Geoff Roach, director of application development for Informix. "Systems designed with VantageTeam for Informix will now be able to take advantage of the productivity built into NewEra, such as multi-platform development and deployment, a comprehensive high-level language and powerful development tools."

NewEra Application Generation

The VantageTeam object-oriented development environment offers full support for NewEra application generation based on the popular OMT methodology. Integrated with the NewEra development environment, it builds complete object models, takes data from the models and generates a complete INFORMIX-NewEra application. The application is directly associated with the NewEra class definitions and NewEra language constructs. VantageTeam features and functions for INFORMIX-NewEra offer a complete object-oriented programming environment for the generation, compiling, testing and implementation of NewEra applications.

INFORMIX-4GL Application Generation

The VantageTeam development environment includes tools that generate complete INFORMIX-4GL applications with information from design diagrams. The mapping from models to code and procedures can be customized by the user for enhanced performance or quality standards. The code generator also enables the reuse of existing INFORMIX-4GL modules by allowing references to predefined modules and templates in the structure charts that direct the code generator to include the externally defined routines. Tightly integrated with the Informix Rapid Development System (RDS) and the INFORMIX-4GL compiler, users can generate, compile, run and test their INFORMIX-4GL applications in one environment.

INFORMIX Database Schema Generation

Informix database schemas are generated by VantageTEam tools by translating the Entity Relationship Diagrams (ERD) into Informix database tables and indices. All referential integrity constraints are captured as stored procedures enabling the testing of different variables on the performance and functionality of an application. From a reverse-engineering approach, users are able to develop a new Informix database from existing relational database tables. The existing database is translated into an Entity Relationship Model that can be use as the basis for a new project.

VantageTeam also supports code generation for C++, Smalltalk and Ada application as well as automated documentation generation.

VantageTeam for Informix is available on Unix workstations from Sun, HP, DEC and IBM. Pricing starts at $7,000 and varies based upon configuration. VantageTeam and VantageTeam for Informix are distributed by Cadre direct sales force in the United States and by direct and distributor sales channels worldwide. All of Cadre's products are supported by award-winning technical and professional services, including product and methods training, hot-line support and consulting services.

Informix Software is the leading supplier of high performance, parallel processing database technology for open systems. The company's database servers are the number one choice of computer hardware manufacturers for publishing Transaction Processing Council (TPC) benchmarks for UNIX-based systems. Informix products also include application development tools for creating client/server production applications, decision support systems and ad-hoc query interfaces and connectivity software that allows information to be shared transparently from PCs to mainframes within the corporate computing environment. Informix's corporate headquarters is based in Menlo Park, Calif.

Cadre Technologies Inc. is the largest provider of Unix-based modeling tools and the marketshare leader in object-orient analysis and design solutions worldwide. The company's products and award-winning services help automate and manage the entire software development life cycle. Its comprehensive solutions support both object-oriented and structured method approaches to software development. Its products are available for most workstations running SunOS, Solaris, OSF/1, AIX, HP-UX, IRIX, VMS and Microsoft Windows operating systems. Headquartered in Providence, R.I., with sales and support offices throughout the United States and Europe, and with distributor sales offices internationally, Cadre has more than 41,000 installations worldwide and a customer base that includes General Motors, Kodak, IBM, Motorola, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, NASDAQ, AT&T, Deutsche Post AG, News International and Electricite de France. -0-

VantageTeam is a trademark of Cadre Technologies Inc. INFORMIX is a registered trademark and NewEra is a trademark of Informix Software Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks of their respective companies.

CONTACT: Cadre Technologies Inc.

Carolyn Beaudry, 401/351-5950

or

Informix Software Inc.

Jaye Prosser, 415/926-6316