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Optiant
Co-Founder Named One of the World's Top Young Innovators by Technology
Review, MIT's Magazine of Innovation
Willems
honored at exclusive three-day event where international leaders
connect with 100 top innovators under age 35
BOSTON
AND CAMBRIDGE, MA - May 21, 2002 - Optiant, the pioneer in supply
chain design and optimization, today announced that Sean Willems,
Ph.D., co-founder and Chief Scientist, has been chosen as one of
the world's 100 Top Young Innovators by Technology Review.
The TR100, chosen annually by Technology Review, MIT's award-winning
magazine of innovation, consists of 100 individuals under 35 whose
innovative work in business and technology has a profound impact
on today's economy.
Willems'
ground-breaking research in multiechelon inventory theory is at
the core of Optiant's PowerChain™ suite, and he leads
the research and development efforts for the company's future offerings.
The software, the first of its kind in the supply chain design and
optimization market, addresses many of the biggest challenges faced
by manufacturers:
- optimizing
inventory levels across the supply chain
- determining
vendor selection strategies
- properly
sourcing across the supply chain to meet customer service levels
- managing
the ramp up and ramp down in the product life-cycle
- optimizing
part selection for multi-generation products
In addition
to leading Optiant's technology development, Willems also currently
holds an assistant professor position at Boston University's School
of Management, where he specializes in operations management and
supply chain management. He frequently presents at the top academic
conferences, including MSOM and INFORMS. Willems is also published
in the leading supply chain journals, including Manufacturing
& Service Operations Management; and was recently named
a supply chain "Pro to Know" by iSource Business Magazine.
Willems is being honored Thursday, May 23rd, during a conference
and awards ceremony at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
hosted by Technology Review's Editor-in-Chief John Benditt
and CNBC's Consuelo Mack. The event, themed "The Innovation
Economy: How Technology is Transforming Existing Businesses and
Creating New Ones," includes a full day of conference sessions
and panel discussions followed by an evening gala awards ceremony.
Members of the last class of the TR100 included Marc Adreessen,
co-founder of Netscape; Michael Robertson, creator of MP3.com; and
Jonathan Ive, Apple Computer's designer of the iMac.
"This
is a powerful endorsement of Sean's research and its real-world
applications," said Dan Ross, Optiant's CEO. "This recognition
underscores the importance in today's economy of new, cutting edge
technology that directly - and immediately - impacts companies'
earnings."
About
Technology Review Inc.
Re-launched in 1998 as "MIT's Magazine of Innovation,"
Technology Review is the world's oldest technology magazine.
The magazine, as well as its signature events and Internet businesses,
delivers essential information on emerging technologies on the verge
of commercialization. Since its re-launch, Technology Review's
paid circulation has more than tripled, from 92,000 to 310,000 (as
of January 2002). Several hundred thousand current MIT alumni, faculty
and students, senior technology thinkers and influencers - venture
capitalists, chief scientists, researchers, senior corporate executives,
investors, and innovators throughout the world -- constitute the
Technology Review community. Technology Review is
published monthly and is available on newsstands and online at www.technologyreview.com.
About
Optiant
Optiant is a pioneer in the emerging market of supply chain design
and optimization. Optiant's flagship software solution, the PowerChain™
suite, enables global organizations to design and configure optimal
supply chains, solving real-world problems today. PowerChain
determines cost-effective inventory placements and integrates supply
chain strategy into sourcing and distribution processes for quantifiable
results in less than ninety days. Optiant has proven that intelligent
inventory policies improve customer service levels and provide rapid
ROI by driving out millions of dollars of associated costs from
complex supply chains. Our roster of blue-chip clients, including
Global 1000 discrete manufacturers, utilizes Optiant's expertise
to design competitive supply chains and innovative inventory policies.
PowerChain solutions are built on patent-pending optimization
technology based on more than ten years of leading-edge research
and industry partnerships at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Optiant is a privately held company headquartered in Boston, Mass.,
and can be reached at www.optiant.com
or (781) 238-8855.
Optiant
and PowerChain are trademarks of Optiant, Inc. All other trademarks
are property of their respective owners.
Contacts:
For Optiant:
Holly Allison
781-238-8855
Holly.Allison@optiant.com
For TR100
and Technology Review:
Kristen Collins
KMCpartners
617-795-0800
kristen@kmcpartners.com
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