Business integration leader Sterling Commerce has announced that it has completed the acquisition of TR2, a provider of data cleansing and synchronisation solutions for customer product information management needs.
This acquisition strengthens Sterling Commerce’s current business integration solutions and its position in the retail and consumer packaged goods industries by adding market share and enhanced capabilities to its hosted offering. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Kosin Huang, senior analyst, The Yankee Group said of the deal: “Sterling Commerce’s acquisition of TR2 provides a powerful combination of the leading solution providers for data synchronisation. The collective solution set and practical industry expertise offers an evolutionary path for enterprises striving to achieve supply chain best practices.”
Data synchronisation has become a strategic initiative as manufacturers, distributors and retailers align their businesses to improve the quality and accuracy of business transactions, and enable the application of new technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID) and collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR).
Hundreds of companies have chosen TR2 to lead their data synchronisation implementation efforts, including leading retail / CPG manufacturers such as Black & Decker, Elmers, L’Oreal, Moen, Ocean Spray and United Natural Foods Inc. In the USA, their shared home market, Sterling Commerce and TR2 are both UCC-certified Solution Partners and recognised by UCCnet Services as ‘Top Performing Solution Partners’.
Sam Starr, president and CEO, Sterling Commerce said: “Sterling Commerce now has the leading market share and the most complete solution portfolio for data synchronisation. We provide companies with a solution that best fits their needs and budget and a strong foundation that evolves as their trading partner collaboration needs grow.”
The TR2 purchase expands Sterling Commerce’s hosted data synchronisation solution to enable companies to achieve quick and cost-effective integration into leading data pool services such as Transora, WWRE, SINFOS and UCCnet, ensuring compliance with data synchronisation mandates from retailers. The joint offering includes data validation, data cleansing, catalogue capabilities, consulting, and support services, and is available immediately to the market. Future enhancements will include services surrounding additional collaborative integration initiatives.
Tom Rauh, president, TR2 commented: “The combination of these two market leaders in the retail / CPG industries means unprecedented practical experience and solution resources for our customers.”