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Technology Stocks : Nortel Networks (NT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (2966)	7/2/1999 7:46:00 AM
From: Paul Lee	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 14638

Domino's Pizza and Nortel Networks Team to Deliver Next Era of Innovation Pizza Industry Innovator Turns Up Heat on Competition With High-Performance Network ANN ARBOR, Mich., July 2 /PRNewswire/ - Domino's Pizza, Inc. -- the company that revolutionized the fast-food industry with the promise of hot pizza delivered fast -- is preparing to deliver the next era of innovation with the help of a high-speed integrated communications network. The network is being built with Nortel Networks (NYSE/TSE: NT) equipment, and will support the company's focus on improving customer service and operating efficiencies that have made Domino's the world leader in pizza delivery. Domino's, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, will rely on the new infrastructure to create robust and highly reliable local and wide area network (LAN, WAN) environments to serve the company's corporate headquarters and regional offices, as well as 18 food distribution centers throughout the United States. The network provides the foundation for a highly integrated communications system that will support virtually all aspects of Domino's business and help drive the next evolution of the company's product, distribution and service leadership. Domino's has been a key force for change in our industry, setting new standards and expectations for consumers who want a high-quality product delivered with the utmost speed and convenience,'' said Matthew J. Maguire, director of information technology for Domino's. ''This new infrastructure will enable us to take our innovation to the next level.'' Maguire said the new installation - which was designed in collaboration with Nortel Networks -- replaces a system of departmental networks developed over the years, which lacked integration, centralized management and scalability. According to Maguire, the strategy for the new network is to create a dynamic and robust environment with end-to-end management to accommodate all of the company's data-intensive needs now and in the future. At the forefront of those needs is the ability to share information more quickly between Domino's network of corporate and regional offices and food distribution points, resulting in improved decision-making and customer service. The new network will enable enhancements in day-to-day store management through daily transmission and analysis of critical retail point-of-sale data. Each day, sales and service data will be transmitted from the individual stores to a central database for analysis. This trend data then will be fed back to and used by store managers to proactively direct and improve key aspects of their store operations, from response and delivery intervals to staffing, cash flow management and sales promotions. Such timely feedback also will allow managers to effectively address and troubleshoot specific customer service issues, such as delayed order delivery. The data analysis also includes information on pizza sales, allowing corporate management to closely track customer sales by item size and type, which in turn helps them more effectively project sales and manage inventories. In addition, the new network ultimately will facilitate on-line, just-in-time ordering of dough, cheese and other ingredients from Domino's regional warehouse distribution centers, speeding processing and delivery, and assuring fresher products for consumers. Key administrative functions also are being facilitated through the back-office infrastructure. These include payroll processing, personnel records, and other human resources functions, as well as access to safe driving records on potential delivery hires. Use of the Internet for email, departmental intranets and other applications also will flourish with the robust network. Domino's need for continuous, real-time exchange and analysis of information will only grow as we seek to raise the bar for quality products and service within our organization,'' said Maguire. ''We will look to this network to help us feed back information to stores even faster to help managers maximize their responsiveness to customers and trends.'' Maguire said the flexibility of the network will allow Domino's to build a Unified Networks environment, integrating telephony, data and video communications for improved efficiencies and timeliness of information in the future. It also may pave the way for new innovations in the way customers order, including ordering over the Internet. Domino's LAN and WAN infrastructure features a collapsed backbone network with two Nortel Networks' Accelar routing switches, connected 1800 feet apart by fiber optic cable. Nortel Networks' Distributed 5000 intelligent hubs connect into the company's wiring closets, with System 5000 backbone chassis installed in the largest of the closets. Nortel Networks' BayStack 350 and 450 10/100 switches are used for uplinks from hubs and server connections. Nortel Networks' Access Node (AN) routers provide connectivity to remote sites. The company also is using the Nortel Networks' Optivity Network Management System suite of network management tools to monitor and configure equipment. Domino's uses Nortel Networks' compression technology to reduce communications costs.