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Chennai, Aug 1 Ramco Systems Ltd (India business) reported higher net loss of Rs 9.25 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2008 compared with net loss of Rs 2.96 crore for the same quarter last year. Revenue dropped to Rs 20.85 crore (Rs 27.61 crore).

The company has attributed this to “tough market conditions leading to delays in signing contracts, especially in the manufacturing sector.”

The global first quarter income of the Chennai-based IT company, including revenues from subsidiaries in the US, Switzerland, Singapore, Malaysia and South Africa, was $9.81 million, with a net loss of $2.74 million.

Global software and services revenue contribution was led by India and the US with a share of 34 per cent and 29 per cent respectively. The software solutions business contributed 92 per cent of the revenues and the IT services practice accounted for the rest of the global first quarter revenue, says a company press release.

During the June quarter, Ramco OnDemand ERP, a full-fledged ERP (enterprise resource planning) available on a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, reached the milestone of 100 customers, with over 1,000 users in India. Ramco now plans to offer this service to the international markets such as the US, Singapore, South Africa and UAE during this fiscal.

Highlights of the quarter for Ramco India include order wins from Trivitron, Geojit, Metso Minerals, EMRI and ‘go-live’ of Bharat Gears, DLF & Adani Logistics. The BPO business of Ramco won an order for payroll processing for Avaya India.

Commenting on the results, Mr P.R. Venketrama Raja, Vice-Chairman, Managing Director & CEO, Ramco, said investments in Ramco OnDemand ERP and the BPO business are helping Ramco expand their customer base at a rapid pace. “We are hopeful of an improved business outlook and Ramco is targeting profitable growth in the coming quarters.”

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