USDATA Ships Xfactory, The First MES System To Successfully Apply Visual Object Modeling To The Manufacturing Plant.

RICHARDSON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 12, 1998--USDATA Corporation (Nasdaq: USDC) today announced that it began shipping its Xfactory object modeling MES, the innovative new Manufacturing Execution System which was introduced at Microsoft Headquarters in June. Xfactory, which incorporates Microsoft's newest technologies and is built on Microsoft DNA (Distributed interNet Applications) architecture, is the first and only MES system to successfully apply visual object modeling to the manufacturing environment. USDATA will offer personal demonstrations of Xfactory at booth C3 in the Microsoft Partner Pavilion at Comdex/Fall, Nov. 16-19 in Las Vegas.

During the Xfactory introduction at Microsoft, Charles Stevens, Microsoft vice president of the Application Developers Customer Unit, explained, "Microsoft has been working very closely with USDATA during the development phase, and we are happy to extend this relationship from a development and technical relationship to a sales and marketing relationship and to support USDATA in the field as they go out to customers to sell the product and distribute it through their value-added channel." He added that Microsoft, "looks forward to the tremendous success this product will be in the marketplace and to continue our close relationship with USDATA."

According to Bob Merry, USDATA president and CEO, "We expect our customers to see implementation times improve by a factor of six over other MES solutions. Since end users can change and maintain Xfactory systems themselves, it will also have a very low total cost of ownership. Rapidly improving manufacturing performance at a low cost is what Xfactory is all about." Xfactory is the first software to enable process engineers to implement and maintain complete control of plant production data. Xfactory is a work-in-process (WIP) tracking product that enables factories to integrate, coordinate and manage data across multiple levels - including all areas of production, inventory management, scheduling, planning and business management. It creates a visual representation of the factory using objects that represent different manufacturing functions. Xfactory allows the user to point, click, drag and drop with complete control of real-time manufacturing. This easy-to-use, Windows NT-based, object-oriented program is scalable from the smallest to the most complex manufacturing installations.

The Xfactory architecture is based entirely on ActiveX components. Common Object Model (COM) and ActiveX specifications allow client application software to run on a variety of platforms with little or no configuration of the client computer. Xfactory client components can be incorporated in such environments as Visual Basic, C/C++, and SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) packages, such as USDATA's FactoryLink ECS and others. Client applications can also be run as ActiveX documents inside a web browser. As a result, Xfactory does not have to target a specific operating system or hardware environment, and Xfactory components are completely capable of running across the Internet. Xfactory is one of the first tools to bring these new technologies to manufacturing and one of the first software systems to integrate disparate technologies under a single set of programs.

In order to achieve this innovation, Xfactory was designed from the ground up with a 3-tiered architecture, which supports and integrates ActiveX and COM on the client services tier, Microsoft COM+ on the business services tier and the SQL Server on the data services tier. Unlike single client or client/server systems, a three-tiered architecture can separate corporate data, business rules and client station programs, resulting in many benefits, including greater security, optimized client database connections, fast and direct network updates, reduced client station database access and distributed processing. The result is greater scalability, reliability, speed and throughput.

Xfactory uses an innovative means of sending and receiving production information called event pipelining. This event-based means of distributing real-time manufacturing data allows clients to easily register and respond to plant events from anywhere on the network, providing real-time integration. According to Merry, "As the manufacturing industry recognizes the need to move towards more open technologies, the plant floor is poised to become truly integrated with high-level business systems while retaining the agility critical to change. Xfactory is the first software that enables manufacturers to take full advantage of this new paradigm." Xfactory bridges the gap between the plant floor and the executive suite by providing components which can be utilized by manufacturing management, system integrators, and SCADA and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems software vendors.

In addition to Xfactory(TM), USDATA offers two flagship products: FactoryLink ECS(TM) and WebClient(TM). FactoryLink ECS is USDATA's patented multi-user real-time SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) application server for manufacturing and process automation. It allows data to be collected from a wide variety of plant floor devices, and valuable information to be distributed easily throughout the entire organization. WebClient connects directly into the FactoryLink ECS server, enabling customers to remotely view and control their factories from anywhere in the world via an intranet or the Internet. USDATA also provides comprehensive services and training for its customers, including Year 2000 solutions and support in migrating to Windows NT.

USDATA Corporation (Nasdaq: USDC) is a global supplier of real-time application development software that enables information integration, decision support and supervisory control throughout the manufacturing enterprise. The company's client/server products help automate manufacturing and process control, allowing customers to reduce operating costs, shorten cycle times and improve product quality. USDATA is committed to solving customer problems and increasing productivity in manufacturing through technological innovation. For more information, visit USDATA on the Web at www.usdata.com.