IRVINE, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 08/02/06 -- Sage Software announced today that Power Curbers Inc., the world's leading manufacturer of slipform concrete machinery, has sharpened its competitive edge with an integrated, front and back office solution from Sage Software. The fully integrated business management solution includes the company's premiere enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, Sage MAS 500 ERP, plus Sage FAS Fixed Assets and Sage CRM SalesLogix software. This combination of award-winning products from Sage Software enables Power Curbers to efficiently link manufacturing, accounting and sales, streamlining operations from the sales team to the shop floor and dramatically increasing productivity and profitability.

Power Curbers manufactures complex concrete slipforming machines one-at-a-time, nearly all of which are customized for each customer. The company's flagship product, the 12-ton 5700-SUPER-B slipform paver, is the best-selling machine of its kind in the world, and Power Curbers builds one every two days. Sage MAS 500 is used to configure each machine, create production orders, monitor each job's progress through production, perform invoicing and manage inventory. Sage MAS 500 also helped Power Curbers implement a "pull" inventory system as part of its "Just-in-Time" (JIT) manufacturing process, plus the new ERP system had a dramatic impact on back-office processes.

"We've harnessed the power of Sage MAS 500 and its internal controls, and doubled our inventory turns in just 12 months," said Craig Neuhardt, vice president of manufacturing at Power Curbers. "On the accounting side, it used to take us 14 working days to close the books every month. Now we can do a closing in only two or three days, freeing up about 40 percent of our accountant's time for higher-level tasks."

With the complexities of Power Curbers' operations, fixed asset tracking and depreciation is a huge concern. Neuhardt leveraged the power of Sage Software's integrated solutions and brought management of the company's fixed assets in house with FAS Asset Accounting, a Sage FAS solution. Simplification was immediate, as purchase orders generated by Sage MAS 500 for capital equipment automatically populate line items within the fixed assets schedule in FAS Asset Accounting. Improvements were even better with existing assets.

"Phasing out obsolete equipment or trading in older equipment is common for a manufacturer like us, so accurate tracking is essential," said Neuhardt. "With FAS Asset Accounting, we're able to include the level of detail necessary to confidently and accurately track all of our capital equipment, in addition to the myriad of parts we use to produce our own machines."

In the front office, Power Curbers' sales force is automating on Sage CRM SalesLogix to manage customer relationships for more than 15,000 active accounts. Providing a full view of the customer, Sage CRM SalesLogix helps manage the existing customer relationships, buying behaviors and cycles, plus lead generation, sales opportunities/pipelines and support with all data tied directly into the ERP system.

"We chose Sage CRM SalesLogix for its ease of use and because it gives us a 360-degree view of our customers and our sales funnel," said Stephen Bullock, vice president of sales for Power Curbers. "We also had such a great experience with our other Sage Software products and our business partner, we were confident the integrated system would perform to our lofty expectations -- and so far it has."

An exclusive Sage Select business partner and Sage Software "President's Circle" winner in 2005, Practical Software Solutions of Concord, North Carolina did the entire installation, integration and training for Sage MAS 500, Sage FAS fixed Assets and Sage CRM SalesLogix.

"We went live four months from the day we decided to buy Sage MAS 500. If the software was anything less than what it is, this would not have been possible," Neuhardt said. "Implementations for FAS Fixed Assets and Sage CRM SalesLogix went equally well. I'd put Sage Software and the team at Practical Software Solutions up against anybody else -- and any system -- anywhere in the world."

About Power Curbers

Power Curbers, Inc. is a 50-year-old family-owned company in Salisbury, NC, which manufactures machinery for slipforming concrete curb-and-gutter, highway safety barrier, bridge parapet, monolithic curb, gutter and sidewalk, irrigation ditches, roller compacted concrete (RCC) dams, and flat paving up to 16 feet (5 m) wide. Products are sold in 70 countries. The company's mission statement, "Our Commitment Shows," is a measurement for associates, who seek to sell, produce and service equipment to meet their customers' needs. For more information, please visit www.powercurbers.com or call 704-636-5871.

About Practical Software Solutions, Inc.

Practical Software Solutions provides Enterprise Business Software and associated services to mid-market businesses within the Carolinas and Virginia. Practical's goal is to ensure their customers are using the appropriate Enterprise Business Software within their work environments and to assist their customers in leveraging the software to meet their immediate business challenges, and effectively position them to meet the challenges of the future. To accomplish this task, Practical maintains a complete staff of functional and technical resources with diverse backgrounds and hands-on experience within the manufacturing, general business, and information technology disciplines. Practical has been providing software and services to the mid-market since 1993. For more information, please call (704) 721-6800 or visit our Web site at www.practicalsoftwaresolutions.com.

About Sage Software

Sage Software supports the needs, challenges and dreams of more than 2.6 million small and mid-sized business customers in North America through easy-to-use, scalable and customizable software and services. Our products support accounting, operations, customer relationship management, human resources, time tracking, merchant services and the specialized needs of accounting practices and the construction, distribution, manufacturing, nonprofit and real estate industries. Sage Software is a subsidiary of The Sage Group plc, a leading international supplier of accounting and business management software solutions and related products and services for small to mid-sized businesses. Formed in 1981, Sage was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989 and the Group now has 5.0 million customers and employs over 10,500 people worldwide. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.sagesoftware.com/moreinfo or call (866) 308-2378.

© 2006 Sage Software. All rights reserved. The Sage Software logo and the Sage Software product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software or its affiliated entities.

Media Contact:
Stephen Moore
Senior Manager, Public Relations
Sage Software
(949) 790-2040
stephen.moore@sage.com