Computer Associates International Inc has finally released its ManMan/X manufacturing suite for Windows NT, following a long, slow beta test process that began last April. The software, now called MK Manufacturing from what is now the company’s MK Group subsidiary, is one of the last major programs to go up on NT as part of Computer Associates’ landmark deal to bundle its software with NT (CI No 2,651). As ManMan/X, CA’s manufacturing software has had a stormy history, dating back to its acquisition of the Ask Group, which licensed core code from Baan NV. Baan tried to keep it away from Computer Associates after the Ask acquisition. Last June Baan released an NT version of its own, called Baan IV manufacturing software, beating Computer Associates to the punch by eight months. CA shipped a pre-release of MK Manufacturing in September. Meanwhile, the MK Group last week also unveiled MK Enterprise, an enterprise requirements planning package for manufacturers that hooks directly to CA’s new Unicenter TNG interface. The combination is an integrated suite that combines ERP and Unicenter enterprise management capabilities, with hooks to OpenIngres thrown in for good measure. The combination runs on NT plus Hewlett-Packard Co, IBM Corp, Digital Equipment Corp and Sun Microsystems Inc Unix boxes. MK Enterprise also comes with hooks to Appli-Bus, a factory floor management program from France’s Group Silicomp. Appli-Bus links to factory floor widgets like programmable logic, numeric and robotic controllers. Information about the widgets then goes through MK Enterprise to Unicenter, where it shows up on the TNG interface just like the computers and networks TNG was designed to monitor. On a roll last week, the MK division also unveiled the MK Logistics warehousing package on NT and the same key Unixes. Logistics, aimed at distributors, mail-order retail houses and logistics services companies integrates everything in a warehouse operation from deciding which orders both humans and robots should pick and ship first to sending data to a company’s sales and marketing departments.