Supply-Chain Deal Adds Analysis

RiverOne, a supply-chain management software vendor that sells to computer-hardware makers such as Flextronics, is trying to improve its forecasting and analysis capabilities with the acquisition of software company Softchain for an undisclosed amount of stock. The acquisition will add supply-chain planning capabilities to RiverOne's Interactive soft-ware, so companies can better analyze supply and demand and adjust their assembly lines.

RiverOne, which also sells its software to manufacturer Emulex, resulted from a 2001 merger between online marketplace Need2Buy and supply-chain software vendor Efinity.

John Bermudez, senior VP at AMR Research, says Softchain's products could help RiverOne users perform what-if analysis to see how quickly new products could be built.