PITTSBURGH, Jan. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- FreeMarkets, Inc. (Nasdaq: FMKT), the
global leader in business-to-business online auctions, today announced the
expansion of its European operations in Brussels, Belgium. The Company has
moved to a larger facility in order to serve the strategic purchasing needs of
industrial buyers throughout Europe.
Located in the heart of the European Union, FreeMarkets' new office
features a market operations center staffed by over 35 employees who recruit,
train and support industrial buyers and suppliers across Eastern and Western
Europe. These employees speak more than 15 European languages, including
Polish, Hungarian and Czech, and communicate daily with buyers and suppliers
who participate in FreeMarkets' online auction marketplace.
"FreeMarkets has been providing on-the-ground support to its buyer clients
in Europe since 1998," said Glen T. Meakem, Chairman and CEO of FreeMarkets.
"We have conducted online auctions in Europe in many different currencies,
adding up to a total auction volume of approximately 340 million Euros ($350
million US dollars). Our new Brussels facility enables us to expand our global
reach and add to our formidable knowledge of supply markets in Eastern and
Western Europe."
About FreeMarkets
FreeMarkets is the global leader in creating business-to-business online
auctions for industrial parts, raw materials, commodities and services. The
Company created online auctions for approximately $1.0 billion worth of
purchase orders in 1998 and approximately $1.4 billion worth of purchase
orders in the nine months ended September 30, 1999. Since 1995, FreeMarkets
has created online auctions for products in more than 50 supply verticals,
including injection molded plastic parts, commercial machinings, metal
fabrications, chemicals, printed circuit boards, corrugated packaging and
coal. More than 2,000 suppliers from over 30 countries have participated in
FreeMarkets auctions. FreeMarkets provides access to its online auction
marketplace to industrial buyers and suppliers. The FreeMarkets marketplace
includes proprietary online auction technology, technical operations,
industrial market making services, access to a global database of suppliers
and supplier research, call center support to buyers and suppliers in over 30
languages, and marketplace rules and contractual infrastructure. The
company's current clients include United Technologies Corporation, The Quaker
Oats Company, Eaton Corporation, Emerson Electric Company, Honeywell
International Inc., FirstEnergy Corp., and SmithKline Beecham plc.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. There are risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those
contained in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation,
FreeMarkets' ability to retain existing clients and to execute agreements with
new clients. These and other risk factors are described in detail in
FreeMarkets' prospectus dated December 9, 1999, which is included as part of
its Registration Statement on Form S-1, filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SOURCE FreeMarkets, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.freemarkets.com
CONTACT:
Karen Kovatch of FreeMarkets, 412-297-8767,
or, kkovatch@freemarkets.com
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