Saturn Moves Customer Service to the Web

Car manufacturer Saturn Corp. in Spring Hill, Tenn., has partnered with three technology firms -- Computer Sciences Corp. (CSC), Siebel Systems Inc., and The Reynolds and Reynolds Co. -- to launch a Web-based customer service and inventory management system.

The system will let Saturn customers make service arrangements and track their car's service history via the Internet. Dealers could use the system to track inventory and answer consumers' questions. In a statement, the companies said the system would take about 15 months to develop and one year to deploy.

As part of the deal, Saturn has signed a seven-year contract worth several hundred million dollars with CSC in El Segundo, Calif. CSC will launch a demonstration lab near the Saturn manufacturing plant in Tennessee.