BOSTON, MA--(MARKET WIRE)--Jan 13, 2009 -- Through the analysis of close to 650 manufacturing executives, the newest benchmark report by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE:HHS - News), "Compliance and Traceability in Real Time," has found that Best-in-Class companies outperform their competition in many critical Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Putting these findings in context, Matthew Littlefield, a Senior Analyst with the Aberdeen Group, states that, "Best-in-Class performance is differentiated by the adoption of enterprise-wide MES and QMS capabilities, which acts as foundational blocks for building an effective compliance and traceability program." Additionally, "Best-in-Class manufacturers are creating real-time interoperability with these applications and other enterprise solutions like Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and the Supply Chain so that information regarding product and process traceability is further linked across the value chain." To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5398.

For the purposes of this study, Aberdeen has evaluated and classified manufacturers based on four key performance indicators: On Time and Complete Shipments, Response Time to Non-Conforming Shipments, Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and Products Manufactured in Compliance. Best-in-Class manufacturers are defined as the top 20% of performers in a weighted average across the aforementioned four KPIs and results show that Best-in-Class manufacturers perform at:

 
--  99% Products in Compliance
--  98% On-Time and Complete Shipments
--  2.5 Hours Response Time to Non-conforming Shipments
--  62% OEE

The "Compliance and Traceability in Real Time" report identifies specific capabilities manufacturers need to adopt to realize the above performance:

 
--  Focus on "Building in" compliance and traceability to production
    processes
--  Adopt enterprise-wide MES and QMS solutions that provide core track
    and trace capabilities
--  Drill down to improve operations with automated NC/CAPA, SPC, and
    Quality Dashboards

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the following underwriters: Aegis Industrial Software Corporation, Fullscope Inc., Plex Systems, Inc., and Rockwell Automation. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5398.

For additional access to complimentary Manufacturing Research, please visit http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-manufacturing.

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen(TM) for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to http://www.harte-hanks.com.

 
© 2009 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts  02210-1928
Telephone: (617)854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
http://www.aberdeen.com

     Media Contact:
     Matthew Littlefield
     Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
     (617) 854-5204
     Matthew.littlefield@aberdeen.com