(September 10, 2002) - Popkin Software has announced full, integrated support for the first public draft 1.0 of the Business Process Modeling Language (BPML 1.0) in its flagship enterprise modeling tool, System Architect. Created under the auspices of the Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI.org) within which Popkin is a leading author, the BPML standard provides a formal model for modeling executable end-to-end business processes. The new BPML standard also offers support for XML Schema-based process definitions to assist communications among multiple vendors' systems and modeling tools used in Web services.

"With the introduction of BPML 1.0, the IT community now has a long-anticipated standard for modeling and execution of business processing," said Jan Popkin, CEO, Popkin Software. "This new standard will bring all the advantages of a shared business language to companies and their communications with their customers, suppliers, and partners. Plus, it sets a strong foundation for modeling future technologies, such as Web services."

"This initiative is a direct result of a unique collaboration between market leaders of the modeling and software industries to help standardize business process modeling," said Howard Smith, co-chair of BPMI.org. "The IT industry will benefit tremendously as this standard is adopted by organizations worldwide."

Popkin's System Architect enterprise modeling suite will offer integrated support for the BPMI standard in a future release. The BPML 1.0 specification is available royalty free for download from BPMI.org's Web site at www.bpmi.org/bpml-spec.esp.