Stonebridge Delivers First e-Business Portal For Animal Industry to eMerge Interactive

Cattle Producers Go Online for Information Management Solutions

DALLAS, Texas, October 4, 1999 – Stonebridge Technologies, Inc. a leading e-business solutions consulting firm, today announced completion of two Web sites in conjunction with eMerge Interactive, a leading provider of products and Web-based information tools for animal-related industries. The launch of these two sites reflect a new information platform for eMerge Interactive intended to use the Internet to help cattle producers improve beef quality and increase industry profitability.

Working closely with eMerge Interactive, Stonebridge Technologies helped develop and deliver www.cattleinfonet.com, the first portal to integrate e-commerce capabilities, technology and information for the cattle industries. The site offers a channel for selling cattle via real-time cattle auctions and provides an online listing system. eMerge Interactive evaluates and reports monthly performance and cost data using the largest historical database in the industry, while daily key measurements are monitored online. The site also includes fast-breaking industry news and information about numerous related products and services. The second new site, www.emergeinteractive.com, is eMerge Interactive's corporate home on the Web.

Stonebridge solutions enable companies to optimize value from information assets and enterprise systems while leveraging intellectual capital — the knowledge and experience of a company's employees. A full service e-business consultancy, Stonebridge also helps companies form more profitable ties with customers and suppliers, operate more efficiently and use leading technology to gain competitive advantage.

"We are pleased eMerge Interactive chose Stonebridge recognizing our ability to collaborate and deliver groundbreaking solutions," said Dewey Blaylock, President of Stonebridge Technologies Southeast. "Unique business strategies such as www.cattleinfonet.com exemplify the breadth of opportunity awaiting companies like eMerge Interactive that use imagination and expertise to leverage Web technologies in novel ways."

Gearing For Dynamic Growth

As part of the solution, Stonebridge created an extensive, scalable back-end architecture and data management framework to dynamically support the front-end Web sites, as well as other portals eMerge Interactive plans to launch. "Stonebridge completed the project within a very tight deadline," said Dave Ugan, Vice President, IT and e-Commerce, eMerge Interactive. "Rapid deployment helped meet aggressive goals for e-business expansion — enabling us to implement a competitive strategy quickly and further differentiate ourselves in a somewhat traditional market — animal-related industries."

The Stonebridge solution enables eMerge Interactive to manage multiple portals with a unified environment, reducing long term maintenance and future expansion costs. The scalable architecture is based on Oracle Application Server technology and an Oracle8i database. The environment runs on a Sun Enterprise 4500 server. A Java application easily imports feeds from other news sources. Operating system shell scripts import weather information — crucial to the cattle industry — into www.cattleinfonet.com. Easy-to-use tools let eMerge Interactive modify sites and add content in real time without disrupting ongoing site activity and transactions.

"Stonebridge enables us to manage and support our e-business sites in an efficient, flexible manner, with minimal programming intervention," said Ugan. "And the scalable architecture supports our plans to expand e-business operations and scope. The Stonebridge solution also protects our current investments because we can continue to rely on the underlying framework as we establish other portals serving specific industries."

About Stonebridge

Stonebridge Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of e-business solutions, integration and consulting services in the Southeastern and Southcentral United States. Stonebridge delivers 90 percent or more of its engagements using local Stonebridge consultants — a unique strategy giving clients cost-effective solutions that raise productivity and reduce risks associated with e-business transformation and complex technology projects. Stonebridge solutions focus on Extended Enterprise Resource Planning (XERP), Electronic Relationship Management (eRM) and Operations Resource Management (ORM). Areas of technical expertise include: business intelligence, software integration, custom development, business applications, infrastructure development and accompanying IT services.

Stonebridge employs more than 400 associates in 12 geographic locations. Stonebridge clients span a variety of industry sectors such as telecom, high technology, financial services, electronics and energy. Clients include many blue chip companies and large organizations such as Blockbuster, Chick-fil-A, eMerge Interactive, E*TRADE, Home Shopping Network, MCI Telecommunications, Texas Instruments, Williams Companies, GTE, Golfsmith, Nortel Networks and The Weather Channel.

For more information on Stonebridge Technologies, visit us online at www.sbti.com

About eMerge Interactive

eMerge Interactive provides diverse business-to-business e-commerce, information management and technology solutions to enhance profitability in the animal industry. Headquartered in Sebastian, FL, the company is a technology-based XL Vision Inc. and Safeguard Scientifics, Inc., (NYSE:SFE) partnership company with other company locations in Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas. XL Vision is an incubator of imaging-related technology companies, and Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. is an information technology (IT) holding company that identifies, acquires, operates, and manages IT companies. Additional information on the company's technology solutions can be found at eMerge Interactive's corporate Web site, www.emergeinteractive.com.