Mills & Reeve picks InterAction

Oak Brook-based Interface Software said the 290-lawyer, UK-based firm of Mills & Reeve has selected InterAction as its new CRM provider.

Mills & Reeve will integrate InterAction with Microsoft Outlook, Firmware practice management system, and Desktop letter generation system to create a central repository of Relationship Intelligence for lawyers, marketing, business development teams and administrative users.

MicroTek opens D.C. classroom rental facility

Oakbrook Terrace-based MicroTek announced a new training facility in Herndon, Va., a suburb of Washington, D.C. The new facility is located at 12950 Worldgate Drive, in the Monument II Building. The classroom facility is the company's second in the Washington, D.C., area.

The Dulles facility is located 25 miles west of downtown DC in the Dulles/Worldgate area at the southern edge of Herndon. The 9000-square-foot, seven-room facility has classrooms connected to multiple T1 lines, with the added convenience of wireless Internet access, e-mail and phone stations, and a student lounge.

Independent Systems a Mapics certified partner

Chicago-based Independent Systems and Programming Inc., a provider of software and databases for sales tax, use tax, and payroll tax compliance, was selected into the Mapics Certified Partner Program.

The partnership calls for Independent Systems to offer sales and use tax compliance software and databases to companies using Mapics industry-leading ERP systems.

Independent Systems sales and use tax solutions for Mapics include: SalestaxII for Mapics ERP for iSeries; SalestaxPC for Mapics SyteLine ERP; SalestaxPC for Mapics ERP for Extended Systems; and LaserBridge+ which facilitates electronic, editable state tax returns for all systems.

OWC signs distribution pact with PowerLogix

Woodstock-based Other World Computing signed a distribution agreement with PowerLogix of Austin, Tex., giving OWC the right to sell and distribute PowerLogix' entire line of Macintosh upgrade products.

As part of the distribution agreement, OWC has also agreed to provide fulfillment and distribution services, as well as back the end-user support, for PowerLogix products.

Selected PowerLogix products are available immediately through OWC via its Web site (www.macsales. com/powerlogix). In addition to PowerLogix, OWC also offers its own line of OWC Mercury Processor upgrades as well as upgrade products by Sonnet Technologies and other brands.

Motorola to wire snowboarders

Motorola Inc. unveiled plans for a line of outerwear that uses interactive cell phone and portable music technology in snowboarding jackets.

Motorola and privately held apparel maker Burton of Burlington, Vermont, will jointly develop jackets, helmets and caps aimed at the snowboarding set, to be released in the latter half of 2005.

The jackets will have a padded casing for a Motorola cell phone and an MP3 music player. They will feature a device on the sleeve that lets the wearer control incoming and outgoing calls, and toggle back and forth to music, sending audio signals to removable speakers in the hood.

The new clothes will use Bluetooth, a technology that allows devices such as headsets and computers to communicate with each other over a short range without wired connections.

Tellabs acquires Vinci Systems

Naperville-based Tellabs Inc. bought Vinci Systems of Vienna, Va., a privately held developer of optical networking terminals, in a deal valued at up to $52.5 million in cash and stock.

The purchase price includes future milestone payments.

Tellabs said Vinci Systems' technology will enable Tellabs to deliver more cost-effective products for fiber-optic communications.

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