With its global coverage providing for local support and its ability to handle multiple languages, GLOVIA will offer a superior global software solution to buyers. This is particularly true for Western companies expanding their operations into Asia-Pacific and for Asia-Pacific multi-nationals looking to expand westward into North America and Europe, where GLOVIA now offers significant geographic presence and support capabilities.

GLOVIA's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software solution combines the distribution, technology, industry expertise, and support resources of both Fujitsu and MDIS to address the needs of a rapidly growing worldwide ERP market -- a worldwide market with license revenue totaling $2.6 billion in 1996 and expected to grow at 36% annually, reaching $9 billion in the year 2000 according to Boston-based Advanced Manufacturing Research (AMR).

GLOVIA INTERNATIONAL is being formed as the result of the on-going relationship between Fujitsu and MDIS in which Fujitsu has been a key distributor and co-development partner of the CHESS ERP product suite throughout Asia-Pacific. MDIS will retain majority interest in GLOVIA, which will be managed by Bill Engel, current president and CEO of MDIS' CHESS business.

Fujitsu will contribute an aggregate of $29 Million (USD) in cash and other assets to the joint venture and will further benefit the joint venture through its expertise in global manufacturing and its own experience in deploying CHESS in twelve of its factories worldwide. In addition, Fujitsu will further its role as a CHESS development partner and serve as the primary Asia-Pacific support center though its subsidiary WeServ in the Philippines.

"Fujitsu is committed to major growth in the ERP marketplace by the year 2000 and is actively building up our business to meet this strategic plan," said Tatsuzumi Furukawa, group president for Fujitsu's Application Software Business Group and member of Fujitsu's board of directors. "We have selected MDIS as a proven and experienced provider of global ERP systems to partner with us in this new joint venture. The formation of GLOVIA is an important part of our strategy to pursue growth in the ERP marketplace and I welcome the partnership we have established with MDIS."

John Klein, CEO of MDIS Worldwide also stated, "The combined resources from both MDIS and Fujitsu provides powerful, global functionality and technology solutions for customers in a wide range of both horizontal and vertical markets." He continues, "GLOVIA will leverage these strengths to provide rapid implementation, early return on investment, and greater functionality to its global customers."

GLOVIA products are developed to proactively address the critical needs and trends of the ERP market and will further benefit from Fujitsu's experience in providing advanced technologies such as Internet/Intranet support, muti-media products, and object technology offerings. The new company's first product release, scheduled to ship in the second half of 1997, will provide unmatched capabilities for discrete manufacturing, project & contract management, and service centric ERP buyers.

Commenting on GLOVIA INTERNATIONAL, AMR stated, "GLOVIA has the potential to become a significant player in this market." AMR continues by stating, "The joint venture is just the boost that the CHESS ERP software product needed."

MDIS delivers its CHESS ERP software to customers to help them improve their competitive positions. With client/server capabilities, CHESS features Microsoft and Oracle's industry leading technology and is currently in use in over 500 customer sites worldwide. Supported by MDIS' global capabilities and developed using MDIS' own Rapid Application Development tool, PRO-IV, the CHESS technology has been designed for rapid implementation and systems integration.

Established in 1935, Fujitsu Limited is a $36 billion international leader in the development and manufacturing of computer, telecommunications systems, semiconductors, software, and services. Fujitsu's global software and associated services sales, not including operating systems, approach $7 billion.

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