Cast Iron Systems Unveils Company and Releases First Product, the Application Router 1000; Customers Report Significant Cost Savings Using Simple Device.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 8, 2003

Cast Iron Systems, formerly known as IronHide Corporation, announced today the release of its first product, Application Router(TM) 1000, which provides a fundamentally new approach to business integration. Cast Iron has shipped the Application Router 1000 to customers ranging from Fortune 500 to mid-sized enterprises to dramatically reduce their up-front and ongoing IT costs and shorten their implementation time. The company, led by CEO Fred Meyer, has received $8.3 million in private funding from Sequoia Capital and Norwest Venture Partners (see related announcement).

Just as network routers reduce the cost and ease the process with which networks share information, the Cast Iron Application Router simplifies the process with which business applications share information, regardless of protocols and data formats. This special purpose hardware device handles all of the protocol conversion, data format conversion and rules-based routing of information necessary to support the business integration needs.

One of Cast Iron's first customers, PrimeSource Food Service Equipment, uses the Application Router 1000 to automate communication with its suppliers, replacing manual order processing with a device that easily manages communication. The data conversion, proactive alerts, and lights-off management were important criteria when selecting the Application Router. "Put simply, Cast Iron allows us to change the way that we do business with our suppliers. The ease of integration allows us to reduce our purchasing costs, reduce inventory and build closer partnerships with key suppliers. The low initial investment and ongoing costs are also tremendous advantages over other solutions we've seen," said Pat Lawrence, CIO of PrimeSource.

The Application Router was designed to address the gap between companies' existing integration solutions. "Software-only solutions, while appropriate for large, long-range projects, have a learning and implementation curve which is too steep for many parts of the enterprise," said CEO Fred Meyer, formerly chief strategy officer at TIBCO. "The Cast Iron Application Router is a perfect complement to the existing Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) and Application Server market because it solves a critical yet underserved market that requires low-cost, quick to implement, and easy to manage integration solutions."

The Application Router can automate integration both inside the enterprise and within a company's value-chain, with equal ease. Cast Iron's customers have also successfully used the device to connect their ERP systems to custom applications, provide standard connectivity using RosettaNet and UCCnet, and to synchronize mission-critical databases in a reliable and manageable manner.

"The Application Router is an exciting product because it blends comprehensive integration technology with a simple, manageable hardware device, providing its customers unparalleled ease of use and standards support. This has been validated by the strong customer interest that we have seen with the introduction of the product," said Chairman Promod Haque, managing partner of Norwest Venture Partners.

About Cast Iron Systems

Cast Iron Systems, formerly known as IronHide Corporation, is the inventor of the Application Router(TM), and is working with a premier group of customers and investors to build a revolutionary solution to application integration. Cast Iron's unique products enable enterprises to drastically reduce their integration costs by offering a simple yet scalable device. Based in Mountain View, California, Cast Iron was founded in 2001 and consists of a world class team committed to solving the costly and complex IT application integration challenges facing today's Fortune 500 organizations. For more information, visit Cast Iron's website at www.castironsys.com.