Retired Persons Services, Inc. Standardizes on CA-Unicenter.

ISLANDIA, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--October 24, 1996--Computer Associates (CA) today announced that Retired Persons Services, Inc., a mail service supplier of pharmaceutical products, has standardized systems management on CA-Unicenter. The CA enterprise management solution coordinates Retired Persons Services, Inc.'s completely re-engineered IT environment and modernized distribution system.

Retired Persons Services is migrating its IT systems from a DEC VAX environment to a client/server configuration consisting of more than 100 servers and 1,500 managed nodes. The new environment includes UNIX-based DEC AlphaServer 8400s, interconnected Windows NT local area networks, and Pentium-based Windows for Workgroups workstations running mission-critical business applications.

"We need enterprise management for the twenty-first century--and that's what CA-Unicenter offers," said Don Resh, senior vice president and CIO of Retired Persons Services, Inc. "CA-Unicenter is so feature-rich and dynamic--it allows us to set threshold limits so that we're alerted to problems before they impact our business. We are committed to raising the up time of our systems to 99.9 percent once the re-engineering is complete, and CA-Unicenter is integral to helping us achieve that goal."

During the re-engineering process, flexibility and scalability will be designed into all systems and software applications. In addition, applications will be developed to easily accommodate portability between a variety of platforms.

According to Resh, the organization will use CA-Unicenter for a wide range of management functions. Retired Persons Services is developing agents for CA-Unicenter that will monitor the filling and shipping of prescriptions at a fulfillment center under construction in Horsham, Pennsylvania. CA-Unicenter's single sign-on option is expected to dramatically reduce problem calls from end-users, who will no longer need separate passwords for accessing the network, as well as order entry, customer service and financial applications. CA-Unicenter will also protect the confidentiality of customer records.

The frequent updating of the organization's order fulfillment software will be handled by CA-Unicenter's software delivery feature, eliminating the myriad difficulties associated with updating software manually, Resh said. In addition, the CA enterprise management solution will manage financial operations and automate backup capabilities.

"This is a mission-critical business--we fill tens of thousands of prescriptions a day--and the right product has to be sent in a timely manner to the right person every time," Resh said. "CA-Unicenter will be an added resource to the company, helping us to fill that mission."

In the future, Retired Persons Services plans to implement CA-Unicenter TNG (The Next Generation), which features a Real World Interface that uses 3-D visualization and animation to display the entire IT environment.

"We're really excited about CA-Unicenter TNG and will implement it at three locations--at headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, at the RPS Teleservice Center in Roanoke, and at the pharmacy in Horsham, PA," said Resh. "CA-Unicenter TNG is powerful because it lets you actually visualize your enterprise, and analyze and resolve problems in a matter of seconds. With a single glance I can see whether a problem involves a critical area of the business that touches the customer--like the fulfillment and order entry processing--or an ancillary area, such as the human resources system."

"CA-Unicenter was designed with clients like Retired Persons Services in mind--forward-thinking organizations that use technology to make life better for customers," said Yogesh Gupta, CA senior vice president of product strategy. "Computer Associates is eager to work with Retired Persons Services in the future to find new ways for CA solutions to solve the organization's business challenges."

Computer Associates International, Inc. (NYSE: CA), with headquarters in Islandia, N.Y., is the world leader in mission-critical business software. The company develops, licenses and supports more than 500 integrated products that include enterprise computing and information management, application development, manufacturing and financial applications. CA has 9,000 people in 130 offices in 40 countries and had revenue of more than $3.5 billion in fiscal year 1996. CA can be reached by visiting http://www.cai.com on the World Wide Web, emailing [e-mail] or calling 1-516-342-5224.

Retired Persons Services, Inc. administers the largest private, non-profit mail service pharmacy in the United States. Created to serve members of AARP, the AARP Pharmacy Service administered by Retired Persons Services, Inc. enables customers to buy prescription medications, non-prescription medications and other health items at significant savings. Retired Persons Services, Inc. is a separate, tax paying entity sponsored, but not owned or controlled by AARP. -0- All referenced product names are trademarks of their respective companies.

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