The Japan Research Institute, Limited
SAP Japan Inc.

Overview

The Japan Research Institute, Limited (hereafter "JRI"; President: Shunichi Okuyama; 16 Ichiban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) and SAP Japan Inc. (hereafter "SAP Japan"; President and CEO: Kiyotaka Fujii; 1-7-2 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) announced today that Astellas Pharma Inc. (hereafter "Astellas Pharma"; President and CEO: Toichi Takenaka; 2-3-11 Nihonbashi-Honcho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo) integrated the systems of Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. when the two companies merged in April 2005 and that the new integrated system has now achieved stable operation.

The new system used SAP R/3, an ERP (enterprise resource planning) package developed by SAP, the solutions provider used by Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., to integrate the existing business processes of the two companies in all areas, including accounting, production, sales & distribution, purchasing, and personnel. JRI provided support in the supervision and management of implementation of the project for the integration of the two companies' basic systems.

It was decided that Astellas Pharma would use SAP products because 1) Yamanouchi and Fujisawa were both using SAP products and because this would make it possible to integrate systems within the limited time available before the merger of the two companies, 2) a large number of companies in the pharmaceutical industry, not only in Japan but also overseas have adopted SAP products and can be considered become a "standard" in the pharmaceutical industry, and SAP has amassed extensive specialist knowledge and 3) SAP systems offer high reliability and ease of maintenance.

In addition to the wealth of developmental and operational know-how relating to SAP R/3 it has acquired over many years, JRI harnessed all of its experience in assisting with business mergers and business spin-offs in the pharmaceutical industry using SAP R/3 to support the integration project and ensure that the integrated system was operational within a short space of time.

About JRI

JRI, an IT company forming part of the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, is a "knowledge engineering" company that provides high value-added services through the organic application of its information systems, consulting and think-tank functions. In addition to from system planning & implementation and outsourcing services, JRI's activities include research and analysis of domestic and foreign economic issues, the formulation of policy recommendations, consulting on management strategy and administrative reform, and incubation activities, aimed at fostering new business.

About SAP Japan

SAP Japan, established in 1992, is the Japanese subsidiary of SAP AG, a world leader in the field of corporate business software. SAP provides a wide range of solutions, including enterprise resource planning (ERP) packages, that facilitate the implementation of supplier relationship management (SRM), supply chain management (SCM), customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise portals, product lifecycle management (PLM), and other systems. Its products are already used by more than 1.2 million people in over 27,000 companies and 120 countries around the world and have achieved the integration and rationalization of a range of internal and inter-company business processes. In Japan, SAP products are already used by more than 1,300 corporate groupings and are contributing to the computerization of Japanese companies, and are helping to enhance international competitiveness and corporate value. (http://www.sap.com/japan)

SAP, mySAP.com, xApps, xApp, SAP NetWeaver and all other SAP product names and service names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and other countries. Other company names, product names, etc. are trademarks or registered trademarks of the other companies mentioned.

For more information on the content of this report, please contact: The Japan Research Institute, Limited General Inquiries: Hiroyuki Tada, Industrial Marketing Department

Tel: 03-3288-5360
E-mail：tada.hiroyuki@jri.co.jp

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