Grand Central Communications Inc., a San Francisco-based network service provider, today announced that it has closed its Series B funding with an additional $5 million from partners Cargill and Eastman Chemical as well as institutional investor Court Square Ventures. In March, the company announced $23 million in an initial Series B funding round (see Funding Arrives at Grand Central).
Grand Central operates a managed network that’s designed to guarantee the security and reliability of Web services transactions passing through it, as well as provide centralized monitoring, reporting and workflow capabilities.
“By leveraging Web services, Grand Central provides a cost-effective and simple solution to integrate the extended enterprise,” said Craig Donato, president and CEO of Grand Central Communications.
The company’s services are designed to allow enterprises to integrate business systems with outside partners. Its Web Services Network is a subscription-based service that leverages open standards to reduce the complexity in connecting business systems.
Eastman, Grand Central reports, uses Web Services Network as an enabling platform to work with distribution partners. By using Grand Central’s Web services architecture, information and applications located behind the firewall can be more broadly consumed by partners.
“Grand Central is providing the missing pieces for enterprises that want to integrate with partners using Web services standards,” said Mark Klopp, managing director of Eastman Ventures. “As an investor, Eastman is supporting Grand Central’s value proposition to provide the necessary infrastructure for successful deployments, and address the difficult deployment issues associated with business-to-business integration.”
Grand Central is listed by ASPnews as a Top 30 Provider.
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