Metro-North Railroad Purchases Smart Software's SmartForecasts to Improve Service, Reduce Inventory, and Save Money

BELMONT, MA, March 16, 2011 (Press-News.org) Smart Software, Inc., provider of industry-leading demand forecasting, planning, and inventory optimization solutions, today announced that Metro-North Railroad (MNR) has purchased Smart's flagship product, SmartForecasts, as part of a company-wide service improvement and inventory reduction program. MNR, the nation's second largest commuter railroad, serves 275,000 passengers each weekday in the New York City metropolitan area, operating 1,193 engines and rail cars over 765 miles of track. It will use SmartForecasts to reduce inventory stocking levels for its 40,000 active service/spare parts, valued at almost $100 million, while improving parts availability in support of daily operations.

A large percentage of MNR's parts inventory experiences "slow-moving", intermittent demand. This sort of demand is especially difficult to forecast, and its presence can lead to expensive purchases of excess safety stock. MNR's inventory stocking challenge is compounded by the need to manage parts availability between two central distribution centers and 13 manned physical storerooms, which oversee a total of 66 virtual inventory sites.

Seeking substantial improvement in its forecasting and inventory planning, MNR issued a Request for Proposals, and ultimately selected SmartForecasts as the best overall solution. "As part of our evaluation process, we asked each of the finalists to forecast MNR's parts consumption, using real MNR data," said Richard Price, Chief Material Officer for MNR. "SmartForecasts substantially exceeded the forecast accuracy of its nearest competitor. This ability, combined with the product's ease of use and the company's demonstrated competence serving the transportation industry, made Smart Software our best choice. We expect that the implementation of SmartForecasts will enable us to significantly improve the availability of critical parts while reducing our inventory and safety stock margins."

SmartForecasts demand planning, forecasting and inventory optimization software offers unique, patented statistical solutions to forecast intermittent demand, a particularly challenging aspect of service parts management, as well as a complete suite of automated forecasting and planning methodologies. By automatically identifying the right method for each part, SmartForecasts can significantly reduce the amount of inventory required to meet a defined level of service.

"Today's economy places a premium on doing more with less," said Charles N. Smart, CEO of Smart Software. "This is especially true of inventory management, particularly among public and quasi-public enterprises like MNR, where budgets are under exceptional scrutiny. We look forward to helping MNR streamline its parts inventory planning, and demonstrating the potential for improvement to its peers nationwide."

About the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Metro-North Railroad
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a public benefit corporation chartered by the New York State Legislature in 1965, operates the nation's largest public transportation system. The MTA serves the 14.6 million people living in the 5,000-square-mile area fanning out from New York City through Long Island, southeastern New York State, Connecticut and New Jersey. Metro-North Railroad, one of seven independent agencies within the MTA, is the nation's second largest commuter railroad. Its main lines run northward out of Grand Central Station into suburban New York and Connecticut. West of the Hudson River, Metro-North's lines operate from New Jersey Transit's Hoboken terminal and provide service to Rockland and Orange counties. Founded in 1983, MNR and its 5,920 employees serve 275,000 commuter rail passengers each weekday, operating six rail lines with 120 stations and 1,193 rail cars and engines over 765 miles of track.

About Smart Software, Inc.
Founded in 1984, Smart Software, Inc. is a leader in providing businesses with enterprise-wide demand forecasting, planning and inventory optimization solutions. Smart Software's flagship product, SmartForecasts, has thousands of users worldwide, including customers at mid-market enterprises and Fortune 500 companies. Customers with significant service parts requirements include Montreal Transit, Prevost Parts (Volvo Bus), Motor Coach Industries, Otis Elevator, Disneyland Resorts, General Electric, and Siemens. SmartForecasts gives demand planners the tools to handle sales seasonality, promotions, new and aging products, multi-echelon hierarchies, and intermittently demanded service parts and capital goods items. It also provides inventory managers with accurate estimates of the optimal inventory and safety stock required to meet future orders and achieve desired service levels. Smart Software is headquartered in Belmont, Massachusetts and can be found on the Internet at www.smartcorp.com.

For more information, please contact Gregory Hartunian at Smart Software at 1-800-762-7899 or gregoryh@smartcorp.com.

SmartForecasts is a registered trademark of Smart Software, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.