Ross Systems Inc, the Atlanta-based software supplier is disappointed by its third quarter results (CI No 3,149) and sees itself as having something of an image problem. The company supplies integrated software systems for manufacturing, finance and distribution, under the product name of Renaissance CS as well as GEMBASE, the Ross rapid application development tool. Net losses in the quarter were $989,000 compared to profits last time of $717,000 and revenues were up by 5% at $19m. A contributing factor to an undeniably poor 3 months was the extra $1m spent on advertising and marketing as the company tries to raise its profile. The total operating expenses in the quarter rose 16%, dragging the overall picture into the red. Product development costs are running at 16% of revenues for the nine months and the company released the first object-orientated version of its Renaissance CS software in the quarter, but only to test sites. The product is due for general release in June this year. A Windows NT version of Renaissance began shipping in December and is now contributing to the growth in revenues.
