World Wire
ROLLS-ROYCE UNIT, EDS SET DEAL</br></br>The industrial power unit of Rolls-Royce PLC of Britain, an aircraft-engine maker, signed a 10-year alliance with Electronic Data Systems Corp. of the U.S. EDS will buy Rolls-Royce computing and information-technology equipment for an undisclosed price. Rolls-Royce in turn will pay EDS #300 million ($506 million) to develop technical business applications to help improve Industrial Power Group results, initially at U.S. and Canadian operations and later world-wide.</br></br>VENDEX TO BECOME TEMP GIANT</br></br>Vendex International NV of the Netherlands agreed to acquire BIS SA of France, a temporary-employment company, for 2.5 billion francs ($472.3 million). Vendex will become the world's No. 3 temporary-help concern by buying 60% of BIS from its late founder's family for 490 francs ($92.56) a share. It will offer to buy the rest at the same price on the Paris stock market, where suspended BIS shares last traded at 533 francs. Vendex also plans to split its retail and business-services lines.</br></br>VEBACOM TO BUY CABLE FIRM