TruckStops® Makes News with Purchase by Chicago Tribune

ARLINGTON, VA - August 21, 2001 - Chicago Tribune has chosen TruckStops® Routing and Scheduling Software to route deliveries from their 48 warehouses in the Chicagoland area, lower Wisconsin and Northwest Indiana, according to a recent announcement from MicroAnalytics.

Kurt Mueller, Logistics Analyst for the Chicago Tribune explained, "We needed a system that would be able to optimize our routing structure while taking into account the many different delivery challenges that we face on a daily basis. We felt that TruckStops® was powerful enough to accurately model our distribution while taking these issues into consideration."

Chicago Tribune plans to use TruckStops® to help them route their 1,000+ trips to their facilities and approximately 400 city routes. This includes about 75 relay runs, which consist of delivering to their distribution centers who turn them over to the agents who deliver the suburban routes.

After evaluating several routing systems, Chicago Tribune decided to purchase TruckStops®. "All routing software can optimize the routes but the other software didn't have the comprehensive features that TruckStops® did. We felt that this software would provide us with the most accurate picture of what our infrastructure would handle without affecting timely delivery to our customers," Kurt stated.

MicroAnalytics (www.bestroutes.com) has produced logistics software since 1984. The company helped pioneer the development of PC-based routing systems and is recognized as the leading software provider with over 2,400 systems distributed worldwide. In addition to the TruckStops® system, MicroAnalytics publishes and markets the OptiSite® Distribution Planning Model, GeoNet™ Location Databases and the BUSTOPS® Student Transportation Management System. The company operates offices in Arlington, Virginia; Toronto, Ontario; and London, England. Agents in Europe, South America, South Africa, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Singapore represent MicroAnalytics. The Arlington, Virginia office may be reached at 703-841-0414 or via e-mail at info@bestroutes.com.