Optimum Solutions and ACOM Form Business Alliance to Bring Automated Check Processing to Software Customers.

Business Editors

LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 14, 2001

ACOM Solutions Inc., developer and marketer of business solutions for e-business and conventional back office processes, has entered into a business alliance with Nashville, Tenn.-based Optimum Solutions Inc. through which ACOM will offer its EZPrint/400 automated check processing solution to users of Optimum's AS/400 Payroll system, it was announced by Mark Firmin, vice president, sales of ACOM's ISeries/400 Division.

According to Becky Sharpe, vice president of marketing and sales, Optimum Payroll is licensed at more than 900 customer sites. It processes more than 7,500,000 payroll checks annually in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, at companies ranging in size from as few as five employees to as many as 12,000. EZPrint/400 for Checks enables companies to generate complete, signed checks securely on blank safety check stock from stored electronic check templates in a single pass through a MICR laser printer.

"Using EZPrint/400 for Checks, Optimum customers dramatically reduce their susceptibility to check fraud, which is always a major risk when producing checks using conventional line printers and pre-printed multipart forms," Firmin said. "Significant economies result from the elimination of preprinted forms and their associated post-processing costs, including decollation, bursting, sorting and signing. With this post-processing equipment no longer necessary, its high maintenance costs disappear and personnel assigned to post-processing can be redeployed to more productive tasks."

ACOM's complete EZPrint/400 for Checks solution consists of a GUI-based forms design module, the check processing software, Xerox DocuPrint NSeries MICR-enhanced desktop laser printers, blank safety check stock, MICR printing supplies, hardware and software maintenance contracts and a 100 percent money-back guarantee. Equipment for pre-mailing, such as folder-sealers and folder inserters are available as options.

"Optimum Solutions is one of the premier providers of specialized business software to the vast middle range of business users, and we are delighted to be in a business relationship with them," Firmin said. "They routinely demonstrate exceptional concern for their customers' interests, and their decision to introduce ACOM to their users is a concrete example of that concern. We expect that many Optimum customers will welcome the security, efficiency and check process control that EZPrint/400 for Checks already furnishes to so many other firms."

About Optimum Solutions

Optimum Solutions is a Nashville software development company that provides Payroll, Human Resources, Applicant Tracking and Time & Attendance software for the IBM AS/400, Windows NT/98/95 computer environments. Its Payroll and Human Resources offerings are interfaced to more than 30 industry-specific AS/400 software products that provide vertical solutions for a wide range of industries. In addition, it offers its entire product line in an Application Service Provider option (ASP). Customers can gain access either over the Internet or by dial-up connection, paying only a per-employee, per month fee.

About ACOM Solutions

ACOM Solutions is an international developer and marketer of conventional and e-business solutions that integrate with enterprise applications to enhance back office and B2B processes for electronic, Internet and paper-based commerce. ACOM solutions run in all computing environments (host-resident on Windows NT and iSeries/400-AS/400 computers), and are compatible with all financial management/ERP software. Solutions include e-document systems for laser/thermal printer generation of business and financial forms, checks, and barcode labels; hardware-software MICR laser and e-payment systems; electronic data interchange (EDI/XML) solutions for e-commerce between multiple trading partners; and Internet-based commerce solutions. Contact ACOM at 2850 E. 29th St., Long Beach CA 90806; telephone [phone]; fax [phone]; e-mail [e-mail]; Web: www.acom.com.