BorgWarner Joins Covisint Trade Exchange; Forms eBusiness Alliances
2 November 2000
BorgWarner Joins Covisint Trade Exchange; Forms eBusiness Alliances
CHICAGO, Ill., Nov. 2 BorgWarner Inc. has
joined Covisint, the business-to-business Internet trade exchange created by
several major automakers. In addition, the company has formed a number of
partnerships to maximize the effectiveness of the company's ebusiness
strategy.
"BorgWarner is looking to eBusiness as a promising technology tool that
will assist us in achieving our growth goals," said Jack Kalina, BorgWarner
Chief Information Officer. "Joining Covisint is one of several steps we are
taking to leverage potentially valuable forms of information technology across
our organization for the benefit of our customers, suppliers and employees, in
support of our business objectives."
Formed by Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp., DaimlerChrysler AG,
Renault S.A., and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Covisint is being established as an
independent company. It will utilize a single global portal to eliminate
redundant investments by suppliers, with the objectives of lower costs, more
streamlined business practices and increased efficiencies. The exchange is
expected to be the world's largest Internet marketplace, handling up to
$750 billion in annual purchases by automakers and suppliers. Since May,
roughly 25 suppliers have stated their intent to use the exchange. Launch is
slated for late this month.
In addition, BorgWarner recently established a secure supplier extranet to
enhance communication with its suppliers, and a global employee intranet to
foster knowledge-sharing and the leveraging of expertise across the
organization.
"We are committed to putting these tools to the best possible use as we
continue to enhance our internal security, speed and efficiency, while adding
value to our communication with customers, suppliers and employees," said
Kalina. "We will be working closely with Cisco Corporation, International
Internet Consulting Corporation and General Electric Information Systems to
maximize the effectiveness of the company's ebusiness strategy."
Chicago-based BorgWarner is a product leader in highly engineered
components and systems for vehicle powertrain applications worldwide. The
company operates 60 manufacturing and technical facilities in 13 countries.
Customers include Ford, DaimlerChrysler, General Motors, Toyota, Caterpillar,
Navistar and VW Group. The Internet address for BorgWarner is
http://www.bwauto.com .
Statements contained in this news release may contain forward-looking
statements as contemplated by the 1995 Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act that are based on management's current expectations, estimates and
projections. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans,"
"believes," "estimates," variations of such words and similar expressions are
intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual
results to differ materially from those projected or implied in the
forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include:
fluctuations in domestic or foreign automotive production, the continued use
of outside suppliers by original equipment manufacturers, fluctuations in
demand for vehicles containing the Company's products, general economic
conditions, as well as other risks detailed in the Company's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Cautionary Statements filed
as Exhibit 99.1 to the Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1999.