COMMERCE ONE, I2 PARTNER WITH GM’S INTERNET TRADE COMMUNITY

COMMERCE ONE, I2 PARTNER WITH GM’S INTERNET TRADE COMMUNITY    Commerce One and i2 Technologies, Inc., two e-commerce information technology firms, are working with General Motors to develop business-to-business supply chain services for the GM TradeXchange open on-line marketplace.
   GM TradeXchange is a virtual Internet community for GM, its suppliers and other businesses, designed to allow them to perform business transactions with speed and efficiency.
   Under the agreement, i2 will provide supply chain management services and business process expertise to GM TradeXchange. i2’s Internet-based supply chain services are also planned to provide “multi-tier demand, supply and inventory visibility, multi-tier constraint management and vendor collaboration, and improved material release stability,” it said.
   i2 will provide software, implementation and support, while GM TradeXchange will host and manage the applications.
   GM intends to quickly move its global supply chain to the site, i2 said.
   “We will be able to quickly create stronger, leaner and more efficient supply chains,” said Harold R. Kutner, GM’s group vice president of worldwide purchasing. “The goal with GM TradeXchange is not to move the costs around the supply chain, but to reduce the costs of all of our suppliers,” he added.
   GM spends approximately $87 billion annually with its more than 30,000 suppliers worldwide.
   Automobile companies and their suppliers spend nearly 50 percent of their revenues on direct materials, such as components, while assembly and freight costs can add another 10 percent, i2 said.