Covisint drives a hard bargain for Ford

NEWS Ford claims that its investment in B2B exchange Covisint has already been paid back. Dramatic cuts in its tendering costs have been responsible for the rapid return on investment. The motor giant has never said exactly how much money it put into the exchange, but it estimates it made $70m worth of savings by using it last year. It claims this "easily" covers its investment. And according to a report in the FT, the company claims it will save a further $350m in savings during 2001. Savings to date have come from lowered process costs and supplier prices rather than a reduction in the number of purchasing teams Ford employs or its supplier headcount. General Motors, DaimlerChrysler and Renault are the other partners in the exchange.