Bethlehem Steel Joins With OneBuild for Global Construction Marketplace
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
For Immediate Release
BETHLEHEM, Pa., June 22, 2000 - Bethlehem Steel Corporation has agreed to become an equity partner in OneBuild, an e-Business company dedicated to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of procurement in the commercial construction market.
Located in Mountain View, Calif., OneBuild will provide flexible and economic solutions to improve value for all parties involved in construction projects. A complete range of on-line attributes, including open exchanges, request for quotes (RFQ) and private exchanges, will give buyers and sellers of construction materials the opportunity to tailor OneBuild's e-Business tools to meet specific project needs.
Duane R. Dunham, Bethlehem's chairman, president, and chief executive officer, said:
"E-Business companies like OneBuild can play a significant role in improving the efficiency of industry supply chains. For the construction industry, streamlined procurement tools like OneBuild will facilitate timely and accurate communication among buyers and sellers of construction materials. This will increase efficiency and reduce cycle time in the construction process which, in turn, will improve the speed of response and project completion by the construction industry."
"OneBuild represents another piece of Bethlehem's business development and e-Business strategy. We are aggressively pursuing initiatives that capitalize on the speed and cost effectiveness of internet-based business transactions. Initially, we expect our customers to find OneBuild a valuable method to transact business with either existing or new distributors, contractors, subcontractors and other customers. Ultimately, we see the opportunity to link the entire flow of steel construction materials back to our production facilities," said Mr. Dunham.
"We are accelerating our efforts to identify and use emerging technology to streamline both internal and external elements of the entire value chain," said Robert A. Rudzki, Bethlehem's vice president, business development. "Under the umbrella of business development, we are pursuing relationships and investments in software and systems involving commerce, administration, supply and manufacturing that will allow Bethlehem to fully utilize the power of the internet."
"The support we've received from Bethlehem Steel gives us a competitive advantage in this emerging industry," said Abbas Syed, OneBuild's president and chief technology officer. "This alliance adds robustness to the OneBuild solution and positions us as the e-Commerce leader for buyers and sellers of construction materials."
In addition to its interest in OneBuild, Bethlehem is an equity partner in MetalSite for e-Commerce activities and has partnered with Ariba for its e-Procurement initiatives. Expected to be fully functional in July 2000, OneBuild will complement Bethlehem's e-Commerce platform.
Bethlehem Steel (NYSE: BS) is the nation's second largest fully integrated steel company whose 15,000 employees are engaged primarily in the manufacture and sale of a wide range of steel products. It has steel production capability of about 11 million tons located in the eastern and midwestern United States. In addition, Bethlehem Steel operates nine subsidiary railroad companies and has interests in iron ore and coal mining. Its Internet address is www.bethsteel.com. OneBuild has created the business-to-business construction materials marketplace that is rapidly becoming the choice of both buyers and sellers. As the only Internet company specializing exclusively in construction materials procurement and sales, OneBuild offers buyers and sellers a real solution that is backed by the company's proprietary technology.
OneBuild provides a unique resource for purchasing or selling commercial construction materials in a high-trust, high-security environment and offers a convenient, easy-to-use means of executing and tracking purchases and sales. OneBuild's Internet address is www.onebuild.com.