PITTSBURGH, April 3 /PRNewswire/ -- FreeMarkets, Inc. (Nasdaq: FMKT), the
world's leading B2B eMarketplace, today announced that it has signed an
agreement with Bayer Corporation. Under the terms of the agreement,
FreeMarkets will provide Bayer with access to its B2B eMarketplace to conduct
purchasing. FreeMarkets will serve Bayer Corporation from its Pittsburgh, PA
headquarters.
"Bayer is a world-class research organization that turns out a range of
innovative products, for both consumers and industrial organizations," said
FreeMarkets Chairman and CEO Glen Meakem. "We are pleased that Bayer has
recognized the value of applying the same level of innovation to purchasing by
using the FreeMarkets B2B eMarketplace."
"The FreeMarkets effort is part of our overall e-Commerce procurement
initiative," said Nick Cullen, Bayer Corporation Executive Vice President, and
President of Bayer's Plastics Division. "I view this as an excellent
opportunity for Bayer to explore creative purchasing alternatives that will
bring greater value to our businesses."
About Bayer
Bayer Corporation is a research-based company with major businesses in
health care and life sciences and chemicals. The company had 1999 sales of
$8.9 billion and employs approximately 22,200 people. Bayer Corporation is
investing $9 billion in capital expenditures and research and development from
2000 through the year 2004. 2000 capital investment and R&D expenditures are
projected to total $1.6 billion. Bayer Corporation, with headquarters in
Pittsburgh, is a member of the worldwide Bayer Group, a $29 billion
international life sciences, polymers and specialty chemicals group based in
Leverkusen, Germany.
About FreeMarkets
FreeMarkets is the world's leading B2B eMarketplace, with online auction
markets for industrial parts, raw materials, commodities and services. The
Company created online auctions for over $2.7 billion worth of purchase orders
in 1999 and nearly $1.0 billion worth of purchase orders in 1998. Since 1995,
FreeMarkets has created online auctions for products in more than 70 supply
verticals, including injection molded plastic parts, commercial machinings,
metal fabrications, chemicals, printed circuit boards, corrugated packaging
and coal. More than 3,000 suppliers from over 45 countries have participated
in the FreeMarkets B2B eMarketplace. FreeMarkets provides access to its
eMarketplace to industrial buyers and suppliers. The FreeMarkets eMarketplace
includes industry-leading 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. The Company's current clients include
United Technologies Corporation, The Quaker Oats Company, Owens Corning, Eaton
Corporation, Emerson Electric Company, FirstEnergy Corp., SmithKline Beecham
plc, Navistar International and Delphi Automotive Systems Corporation.
FreeMarkets can be found on the Web at http://www.freemarkets.com. FreeMarkets is a
registered trademark of FreeMarkets, Inc.
Forward-looking statements
Statements in this press release that are not historical facts, including
those statements that refer to FreeMarkets' plans, prospects, expectations,
strategies, intentions, hopes and beliefs, are forward-looking statements.
These forward-looking statements are based on information available to
FreeMarkets today, and FreeMarkets assumes no obligation to update these
statements as circumstances change. There are risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
statements, including, without limitation, market acceptance of FreeMarkets'
online auction marketplace, the competitive nature of the market for business-
to-business online auction services, FreeMarkets' ability to retain and
increase revenue from existing clients and to attract new clients,
FreeMarkets' ability to attract and retain qualified personnel, the size of
the market for used equipment and surplus inventory, the demand for online
auction and other asset recovery services by buyers and suppliers, and
FreeMarkets' ability to integrate acquisitions. Risk factors are described in
more detail in FreeMarkets' filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
For more information contact Kim Booth of FreeMarkets, 412-297-8430, or
David Reeder of Bayer, 412-777-5666.
SOURCE FreeMarkets, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.freemarkets.com
CONTACT:
Kim Booth of FreeMarkets, 412-297-8430, or
David Reeder of Bayer, 412-777-5666
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