Press Release
August 2, 2005

Business Objects Helps Graniterock Manage Mountains of RFID Data

Materials and Construction Company Uses Business Intelligence to Improve Operational Preformance and Customer Satisfaction

SAN JOSE, California and PARIS—August 2, 2005—Graniterock knows how to handle heavy loads. The materials supply and construction company totes huge truckloads of rock, sand, and gravel all over Northern California with ease. As a thriving and in-demand supplier of construction material to thousands of customers across the country, Graniterock has, in the process, created mountains of information. That is why Graniterock relies on Business Objects (Nasdaq: BOBJ; Euronext Paris ISIN code: FR0004026250—BOB), the world’s leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions to help manage the data pouring in from an RFID (radio frequency identification) tagging system. With Business Objects, Graniterock has been able to leverage its RFID information to improve operational performance and boost customer satisfaction.

Graniterock, a long-time customer of Business Objects, found that its information management needs grew exponentially after implementing an RFID tagging system to track inventory and supply movement, such as the arrival and departure of trucks through its asphalt and quarry loading locations. The system collects information on the truck, project assignment, and weight for each load via RFID tag readers located at throughout plant locations. Users throughout the organization, including the finance, accounting, and sales departments, as well as senior and middle management, job project managers, and preventative maintenance planners, use Business Objects to gain insight into the transport cycle and ensure timely delivery of materials to customers.

The ability to report on the RFID system is extremely important to Graniterock and its customers because the company uses this information to determine transportation charges. These charges, based by the hour or the load, are a huge component of Graniterock’s expense structure. Graniterock uses its Business Objects system to provide its customers with valuable operational reports on truck pick-ups and deliveries. These reports are a key competitive differentiator for Graniterock, and enables the company to provide its customers with data that shows, for example, why one truck driver can make a delivery in a half hour and why another driver takes an hour to do the same job. Business Objects gives Graniterock this ability to share information that is relevant and useful to its customers, while providing operational information to the customer in real time. The company also uses RFID tracking information to normalize cycle times and ensure timely delivery of materials.

In addition, Graniterock uses Business Objects for its balanced scorecard initiative, its statistical process control reporting, and to provide logistical management reports for customers, identify potential job sites, and automatically e-mail or fax quotes and job status reports.

“Business Objects is the key to unlocking the power of RFID,” said Steve Snodgrass, CFO, Graniterock. “Without Business Objects, we would collect a lot of data but be able to take little advantage of it. With Business Objects, we have turned our RFID tracking system into a strategic differentiator that has improved operational efficiency and customer satisfaction as Graniterock extends its information systems out to its customers. And Business Objects has the reliability, scalability, and performance to meet our needs well into the future.”

“RFID is in its infancy, and many companies are just now understanding the value of using business intelligence to help understand and manage the massive amounts of data that RFID has created,” said Lance Walter, vice president of product marketing at Business Objects. “We expect many companies to follow Graniterock’s lead in recognizing that the true value of RFID will be in using business intelligence to take strategic advantage of the wealth of information delivered by this new technology. They are truly at the forefront of using business intelligence to manage RFID data and Business Objects is right there with them, every step of the way.”

ABOUT GRANITEROCK
Graniterock was founded on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 1900. The company has operations in Watsonville, Santa Cruz, Seaside, Salinas, Hollister, Aromas, Felton, Oakland, San Jose, Redwood City and South San Francisco. Graniterock Pavex Construction Division is a significant heavy engineering contractor building roadways, airport and private commercial and residential projects. Graniterock has also been the recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the Governor’s Golden State Quality Award.

ABOUT BUSINESS OBJECTS
Business Objects is the world’s leading business intelligence (BI) software company. With more than 30,000 customers worldwide, including over 80 percent of the Fortune 500, Business Objects helps organizations gain better insight into their business, improve decision making, and optimize enterprise performance. The company’s business intelligence platform, BusinessObjects™ XI, offers the BI industry’s most advanced and complete platform for reporting, query and analysis, performance management, and data integration. BusinessObjects XI includes Crystal Reports®, the industry standard for enterprise reporting. Business Objects has also built the industry’s strongest and most diverse partner community, and the company offers consulting and education services to help customers effectively deploy their business intelligence projects.

Business Objects has dual headquarters in San Jose, California, and Paris, France. The company’s stock is traded on both the Nasdaq (BOBJ) and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250—BOB) stock exchanges.
More information about Business Objects.

For more information, contact:
Sherry Lowe, Business Objects, 408.953.6038, [email protected]
Melissa Neumann, Eastwick Communications, 650.480.4036, [email protected]