Timken Partners with Premium Brand Manufacturers in E-Business Venture THE TIMKEN COMPANY LOGO The Timken Company, Worldwide Leader in Bearings and Steel. (PRNewsFoto)[KC] CANTON, OH USA 10/12/1999
17 January 2001
Timken Partners with Premium Brand Manufacturers in E-Business Venture THE TIMKEN COMPANY LOGO The Timken Company, Worldwide Leader in Bearings and Steel. (PRNewsFoto)[KC] CANTON, OH USA 10/12/1999
CANTON, Ohio, Jan. 17 The Timken Company today
signed an agreement to join INA Holding Schaeffler KG, Rockwell Automation and
The SKF Group to create a premium brand alliance to provide Web-based services
and integrated logistics for its industrial bearings and related products.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991012/TKRLOGO )
The alliance will offer North American and European authorized
distributors a convenient shopping site for the founding companies' industrial
products, including Timken(R) bearings. The group also will offer the
efficiencies of integrated logistics capabilities in North America.
"As leaders in our industries, the founding companies are moving
decisively to bring the best of e-business to the real world of industry,"
said Michael C. Arnold, president - industrial - The Timken Company. "By
joining forces, we will build quickly on our respective e-business
capabilities, logistics assets and distributor relationships to benefit the
entire supply chain."
"This is part of our strategy to capitalize on e-business opportunities to
realize efficiencies in our business and spur profitable growth," said Daniel
E. Muller - director - e-Business. "Our customers expect us to offer online
ordering and services, and we do that through Timkendirect.com. Now, they will
recognize even greater value from a service that brings many of their leading
industrial product lines together in one place."
In North America, the founding companies have formed CoLinx, LLC, an
independent limited liability company equally owned by the four founding
companies, to manage the operation. CoLinx will acquire both the assets of
PTplace.com, currently a Rockwell Automation Power Systems e-business Web
site, and the shared logistics operations of Rockwell and SKF.
Don Louis, director - e-business - Rockwell Automation, will serve as
president of CoLinx. A team of Timken e-business experts is working with
representatives from each of the founding companies in preparing the service
for launch in April 2001.
In Europe, the companies are joined by The Sandvik Group in acquiring
Endorsia.com International AB, an industrial e-business service provider
currently owned by SKF. The five companies will be equal owners in the
company. Rolf Nordahl will continue as president of the Endorsia.
"Distributors should quickly realize the benefits of a more efficient
ordering system and improved speed and efficiency. Basing the new services on
proven e-business platforms and the infrastructure of Timken Direct, reduces
the software implementation and speeds the launch," said Mr. Muller.
"Because our approach is customer focused, we support adding other premium
brand manufacturers into the alliance to expand the product offering," said
Mr. Arnold. "Our own success will be determined by how well we can serve our
customers. This alliance is designed to do just that."
The Timken Company ( http://www.timken.com ) is a leading international
manufacturer of highly engineered bearings and alloy steels with operations in
24 countries. The company employs 21,000 people worldwide and reported 1999
sales of U.S. $2.5 billion.