Press Release

Verticent announces strategic metal industry win
in Cairo, Egypt

RELEASE DATE: January 5, 2005

TAMPA, FL – Verticent, Inc., a leading developer of enterprise software solutions for small-to-medium size manufacturers and distributors, announced today that Kandil Industries ( Cairo, Egypt), has licensed Verticent ERP suite for metal service centers. Kandil Industries chose Verticent ERP to better match their demand and supply chain to achieve lower inventories, improve capacity management at critical bottlenecks in their process, reduce scrap costs and improve yields, streamline financial consolidation of all their divisions and companies, and move the company from islands of automation and spreadsheets to an integrated enterprise solution. Khalil Kandil, chairman of Kandil Industries, stated “by deploying Verticent’s metal management capabilities, Kandil will become the most efficient metals service center company in the Middle East”. Scott Galloway, president of Verticent, added “this is a very significant win for Verticent. It allows us to leverage our successes in the North American metals industry and gives us a foot in the door of the Middle Eastern market. Kandil Industries is a well known and respected company in Egypt and throughout the Middle East. I can’t think of a better partner with whom we can showcase our solution capabilities. We look forward to replicating this success throughout the Middle East”.

About Verticent:
Verticent, a wholly owned subsidiary of ASA International, Ltd. (a private holding company), provides integrated enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, e-business and business intelligence software solutions that meet the unique business demands of small-to-medium size manufacturers and distributors. With a commitment to specific vertical industries where it has proven experience and success, Verticent leverages industry-specific knowledge and functionality to deliver a flexible, yet affordable, enterprise business system. The Verticent enterprise business system helps enhance overall business operations by reducing implementation and on-going administrative costs, increasing organizational responsiveness and productivity, improving customer service, sharpening organizational insight and control, and delivering a rapid return on investment. For more information contact Verticent at (813) 226-2600, fax (813) 222-0886 or visit www.verticent.com.

About Kandil Industries:
Kandil Industries ( Cairo, Egypt) is a family owned business that has been in the steel market since 1865, with customer satisfaction as its primary goal. Since its establishment, Kandil has been seeking to satisfy its customers by modernizing its facilities and improving the skills of its employees. This consistent improvement plan has made it one of the most reliable steel sheet suppliers in Egypt and the Middle East and has extended the range of its customers.

By committing to its markets through investment in production and distribution chains, Kandil ensures continuity of supply and market stability for coiled steel, pipe, tubing, corrugated panels, and fabricated steel products. Kandil is delivering the highest standards of reliability and employing all of its resources to provide comprehensive services to their customers, through their different plants and service centers. For more information contact Kandil Industries at 2 (02) 5785255, or visit www.kandil.com.