PartMaster GmbH is Now a Member of the ProSTEP iViP Association

Darmstadt, 15 November 2004 � PartMaster GmbH, a company involved in developing software technology for integrating product data from different sources, has been a member of the ProSTEP iViP Association since September 2004.

"Our membership was long overdue", said Steffen Nowacki, managing director of the company, which is headquartered in Rostock. "We have been working together with the Association for some time now within the context of developing the OMG (Object Management Group) standard, �PLM Services 1.0�. It therefore made sense to officially join the Association."

PartMaster GmbH was founded a year ago as a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics (IGD) and the Computer Graphics Center (ZGDV e.V.). The company is developing a framework for online product data integration on the basis of the new OMG standard with the automotive industry as its target industry. In this industry, the OEMs and suppliers involved in a vehicle project usually use a number of different PDM systems, and data integration is performed using customized special solutions or a great deal of manual work.

"The standardization of these PDM system interfaces using powerful technologies such as Model Driven Architecture (MDA) and Java Architecture for XML Binding (JAXB) not only means that data exchange is raised to a new level of quality but also that efficient, integrated data processing can be performed with the help of special software modules. This does not only make sense financially but is also of great significance to the future of the industry", Steffen Nowacki continued. "We are looking forward to exchanging information on the experience gained in this area with other members of the ProSTEP iViP Association and to demonstrating the capabilities of our technology in projects carried out together with users.

The ProSTEP iViP Association offers young, new companies involved in the area of product lifecycle management a special "PLM Start Up" membership. PartMaster GmbH is taking advantage of this opportunity to be involved in the Association.

About PartMaster GmbH

www.partmaster.de

About the ProSTEP iViP Association

The ProSTEP iViP Association is an international branch-specific community comprising leading companies in the automotive and aerospace industries, system vendors and research institutes. The aim of the ProSTEP iViP Association is to find solutions for the challenges facing the manufacturing industry as a result of networked collaboration in a worldwide development network.

A concept based on a coherent, cross-organizational and cross-domain view of data, processes and systems provides a solid foundation for meeting these challenges. The Association�s five main areas of focus reflect this approach: process management, system integration, product data standardization, engineering collaboration and knowledge transfer.

The Association�s shareholding in PROSTEP AG provides the basis for close cooperation in the area of product data integration. ProSTEP AG has a current headcount of over 180 employees and posted revenues of approximately � 15.2 million in 2003.

The ProSTEP iViP Association is headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany, and was founded in October 1993 by 38 industrial companies and a number of system vendors as part of the German STEP initiative. Members of the ProSTEP iViP Association currently include almost 200 companies and organizations from 17 nations.

www.prostep.org.