News Briefs and Product Shorts

• OS/400 EDI-INT software developer TrailBlazer Systems has joined UCCnet's Alliance Partner program, the company announced this month. The UCCnet Alliance Partner program certifies companies to provide resources and tools to customers that subscribe to the UCCnet product registry and data synchronization service. Earlier this year, the Atlanta software company had received eBusinessReady certification for its ZMOD Exchange software by the Uniform Code Council, which verifies that its ZMOD Exchange software is interoperable with other software for transmitting electronic data interchange, or EDI, documents over the Internet using the AS1 and AS2 security standards. UCCnet is a subsidiary of the Uniform Code Council. "Now that we have completed UCCnet communication certification, our AS/400 customers will benefit even more by leveraging off of their initial commitment to EDI-INT to be able to communicate UCCnet XML messages," says Richard Brown, vice president of sales at Trailblazer Systems.
  
  

• Hospital operator Sutter Health has deepened its commitment to Siemens Medical Solutions' MedSeries4 application, and the prognosis is good. Earlier this month, Siemens announced that the Northern California healthcare provider is standardizing on the revenue cycle management component MedSeries4, Siemen's OS/400-based suite of clinical, patient accounting, and general financial applications for hospitals. So far, the revenue cycle management component of MedSeries4 has been installed at 14 Sutter Health hospitals, where it is saving on average between 4 and 6 percent on uncollected accounts, in addition to helping with billing compliance and improving the overall financial workflow of the organization. Following that success, Sutter decided to roll out the application to its entire 33-site network. Sutter is also a beta site for Siemen's new Centralized Business Office system, which enables the health system to function as a single, multi-entity billing office to achieve higher efficiency, and is trying to improve customer service and patient registration workflow with Siemens' e.Health solutions and transaction services. "A CIO lives and breathes by the success of his vendor partners," says Sutter Health's chief information officer, John Hummel. "We're consistently seeing positive outcomes through our work with Siemens, and enjoy the partnership we share."
  
  
• Create!form International last week announced that it will be participating in J.D. Edwards' beta program for the next release of its ERP system. Create!form, the exclusive provider of document management software that's certified by the Denver ERP giant, will be working with the pre-release program to ensure that its software is compatible with J.D. Edwards' ERP 9.0 when it is made generally available. J.D. Edwards is gearing up for the release of ERP 9.0 and SCM 9.0, the next releases of its core enterprise resource planning and supply chain management modules, which are both part of the company's J.D. Edwards 5 product suite.
  
  
• IBM recently shipped a series of new C++ and Fortran compilers for the Linux on iSeries platform. The new compilers for VisualAge C++ Version 6.0 for Linux, XL Fortran Version 8.1 for Linux, and XL Fortran RTE Version 8.1 allow developers using these languages to write to the Linux on iSeries platform. The compilers had previously been available on the pSeries server, and IBM is now making them available on iSeries servers running Linux, as well as providing tools to help port applications from AIX to iSeries Linux. The C++ 6.0 for Linux and XL Fortran (XLF) compilers require SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 on Linux-capable iSeries or AS/400 servers. The compilers became available August 15. For more information, see IBM's software announcement 203-201.
  
  
• VF Corp., the world's largest apparel manufacturer, chose Inovis' Internet electronic data interchange solution to satisfy a trading partner's AS2 requirement, the software company announced last week. VF Corp. will be installing IPNet BizManager 400 Internet EDI, which Inovis obtained in its acquisition of IPNet Solutions last month, to replace its Windows-based EDI INT software, IPNet Solutions' eBizness Transact. The company expects an even greater return on investment with the OS/400-based BizManager 400 software than with eBizness Transact, which saved the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in reduced value-added network fees and paid for itself in six months, Inovis says. VF Corp. is located in Greensboro, North Carolina, and had sales exceeding $5 billion last year. Some of its brands include Lee, Wranglers, JanSport, and The North Face.
  
  
• Serena has delivered a new release of its change management system for Windows, Unix, OS/390, OS/400, and MPE/iX. With ChangeMan DS Version 5.6, the company is offering tighter integration with TeamTrack, the company's newly acquired issue management system. Other enhancements the company says it has delivered with this release include better support for IBM WebSphere Studio 5.0, Eclipse 2.1, Mercury Interactive TestDirector test management software, and the Oracle 9i database. ChangeMan DS Version 5.6 is available now.
  
  

Sponsored By CMS MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS

CMS Manufacturing Systems - Function, Value, Reliability CMS Manufacturing Systems offers a comprehensive, Internet-enabled ERP/Supply Chain Management solution, CMS/400 v5.0, for small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises in tight supply chain relationships, typical of a wide range of industries, from automotive to consumer goods. CMS/400's fully integrated suite of modules is sold as a single comprehensive solution, without tier or user-based pricing. And CMS staff provides all post-sales support, including, implementation, training and ongoing education and support. CMS has installations in over 2,500 plants worldwide. CMS/400's functionality includes integrated EDI/Release Accounting, CRM, Real-Time Shop-Floor Reporting, Production Analysis Tool-Set, Event Monitor, Materials and Logistics Management, APS, Financial Management, MPE, Tooling and Maintenance Integration and is fully Internet enabled with the CMS Easy e-Business Suite. This enhanced e-business capability completes the picture, making CMS the one-stop, single-source, turnkey solution provider for small and midrange enterprises with ERP/Supply Chain Management system needs. And once a new customer has purchased CMS/400, CMS commits its planning, implementation and training resources to helping management and staff fully realize CMS/400's capabilities throughout the enterprise. To learn more about CMS/400, and to register for a no-obligation test-drive, go to sales@cms400.com or www.cms400.com, or call 888-426-7400.