SAS Forecast Server a KMWorld Product of the Year

After evaluating more than 200 vendors whose combined offerings top the 1,200 mark, KMWorld magazine named SAS Forecast Server one of the “Trend-Setting Products of the Year for 2005.”

This prestigious ranking, published in the September issue, highlights innovative products that make a significant impact on the marketplace.

SAS Forecast Server, SAS’ patent-pending forecasting offering, can help companies save money and time by improving the accuracy of their forecasts and the manageability of the forecast process.

Automated, accurate forecasts
This latest forecasting offering from SAS includes important new features, such as large-scale, automated forecasting and time series mining to uncover time-related patterns and trends. This solution, which also includes an interactive user interface for easy forecasting, represents an advance that’s well ahead of anything else currently on the market.

"SAS continues to impress with the innovation and practicality of its intelligence offering, particularly the SAS Forecast Server. Our panelists noted that SAS Forecast Server creates automated, accurate forecasts quickly and easily, allowing companies to make bold predictions and plan for the future more effectively," says Hugh McKellar, editor-in-chief of KMWorld. "We are happy to again recognize SAS for its significant contributions to the marketplace and for creating real trend-setting ingenuity."

McKellar said KMWorld editors and expert panelists looked for innovative products that caught their attention, set the stage for innovation and made a lasting impact on the marketplace this year.

Criteria for selection
As in past years, KMWorld considered usability, flexibility, adoption rate and total cost of ownership. “We also recognized some vendors for their vision toward the future or for a collection of offerings, rather than a specific product or compelling new version of an existing one,” says McKellar.

"SAS Forecast Server helps companies accelerate forecasting so they can enhance supply chain efficiencies, better anticipate and meet customer demand, and boost profitability," says Charles Chase, SAS product marketing manager.

"SAS has long been known as a trendsetter when it comes to advanced analytics and forecasting, and we are pleased that KMWorld has acknowledged SAS Forecast Server as a Trend-Setting Product of the Year," continues Chase. "This recognition will continue to raise awareness of SAS’ innovation when it comes to predictive analytics and business intelligence."

This marks the second straight year that KMWorld selected SAS for a Trend-Setting Product of the Year. SAS®9, a set of integrated software for business intelligence, data integration and analytics, was selected in 2004.

SAS Forecast Server will ship in the fourth quarter of 2005