PeopleSoft Extends Supply Chain With Acquisition Of Distinction

PeopleSoft Inc. expanded its family of supply-chain planning software with the acquisition in early August of Distinction Software Inc., a maker of demand and inventory planning systems based in Atlanta. PeopleSoft, a Pleasanton, Calif.-based ERP software firm, has been working with Distinction since last December to integrate their products. "This acquisition extends PeopleSoft's supply-chain management expertise by providing software products that quickly respond to the demand requirements of high-volume manufacturers and allow them to collaborate effectively with trading partners," says Howard Gwin, senior vice president of worldwide operations at PeopleSoft. The first PeopleSoft customer to use the newly integrated software was Fastenal Co., a national distributor of industrial and construction supplies in Winona, Minn. "Because Fastenal is a high-volume distributor of industrial and construction supplies, optimizing our inventory is of paramount importance," says Peter Guidinger, operations research manager at Fastenal. "We see PeopleSoft Demand Planning playing an integral role in our future supply-chain planning efforts."