Avis Rent A Car, Inc. (NYSE: AVI) has chosen Boundless Technologies' thin client as the device of choice to deliver a new workflow management software application to its service facilities throughout the country, enabling the once paper-based stations to more effectively track and manage the entire service process for its fleet operations. Boundless Technologies is a subsidiary of Boundless Corporation (Nasdaq: BDLS). Avis, the world's second largest car rental business, has successfully completed installation of 60 thin clients at four of its largest service depots and will be installing approximately 200 more at 84 sites nationwide by year-end.

Converting from a manual, paper-based system for vehicle maintenance orders and records, Avis chose the Boundless thin client because of its small footprint, durable design and ability to work with various applications and platforms. In garage settings where space for computers is at a premium and extreme temperatures, dust, grease and exhaust fumes can impair performance of PC drives, the hardy, space-saving thin client delivers the same access to network applications and data as a PC would but at about half the cost.*

So far, Avis estimates that the thin clients, coupled with the new software application have helped its service technicians double their productivity with the new system.

"To improve productivity and help control costs, we needed to provide our garage technicians with an automated workflow system which would improve work order dispatching and give them easy access to our network-updated information about parts availability, manufacturers' warranties, and maintenance and repair histories," said Donna Fronckowicz, systems development project leader for WizCom International, who managed the roll-out of Avis' new hardware and software. "The garage environment was too harsh for PCs, and we found that the Boundless solution fit our application and budget requirements."

"While thin clients have been acclaimed as affordable Internet-access devices, they also offer opportunities for many networking situations beyond Internet use or the traditional office setting," said Michael D. Stebel, vice president of global marketing for Boundless Technologies. " Boundless' thin clients enable Avis' information systems managers to control an entire nationwide network centrally from their New York headquarters, distributing software upgrades and database updates from one server rather than making multiple installations on individual PCs."

Prior to the installation of the Boundless thin clients, Avis' service technicians manually recorded all repairs on paper work orders which were then delivered to a central terminal location. The data was then keyed into a computer connected by a wide area network to Avis' main computer. Now that the garages are using the Boundless thin clients, this redundant data entry step is eliminated, reducing errors and labor costs. Since the new system provides real-time updates and access to Avis' parts and maintenance databases, the company can manage inventories, scheduling and costs much more efficiently.

Boundless offers several models of thin clients, including the new Viewpoint TC family, which offer multiuser access to data and applications through a variety of operating systems and platforms, including DOS, Windows (3.1, 95 and NT), the Internet, corporate intranets, Java, UNIX/X Windows and 3270 legacy applications. Boundless' family of thin clients offer a viable migration path for the future with unique software upgradable modules that enhance performance and expand access to additional computing platforms, as desired, without sacrificing the initial thin client hardware investment.

About Avis Rent A Car, Inc.

Avis Rent A Car, Inc., based in Garden City, New York, operates the second largest general use car rental business in the world, based on total revenue and volume of rental transactions. The Company rents vehicles to business and leisure travelers through approximately 606 locations in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Island, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. Annually, the Company completes approximately 14 million rental transactions with a fleet that averages approximately 193,000 vehicles, generating over $2.2 billion in revenue.

About WizCom International

WizCom International was founded in 1987 and provides reservations systems and Global Distribution Systems connectivity, to the hotel and car rental industries. WizCom processes reservations for over 80 hotel chains and 20 car rental firms. A wholly-owned subsidiary of HFS Incorporate, WizCom employs 550 people and maintains its world headquarters in Garden City, New York and its international sales offices in Bracknell in the United Kingdom.

About Boundless Technologies

Boundless Technologies, a subsidiary of Boundless Corporation, is a world leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of terminals and thin clients for the Windows environment and the Internet/Intranet, legacy and UNIX applications markets. The Company's family of thin clients provides low cost computing solutions with PC-like capabilities where applications reside on a server and are accessed by users on demand. Without the need for large disk and memory capacities, all models offer significant administrative and total- cost-of-ownership advantages over networked PCs. The Company's products are distributed worldwide through a network of OEMs, select distributors and value-added resellers. Boundless Technologies can be reached at http://www.boundless.com or at 1-800-231-5445.

* Source: A white paper by Zona Research completed in the Summer of 1996 compares the five-year life cycle cost of ownership of Boundless' thin client versus PCs. The findings indicate a 57 percent lower cost for the Boundless solution.

Note: All trademarks are the properties of their respective companies.

Source: Boundless Corporation