Overseas groundwork helps IBM net $57 million ANZ services deal
Overseas groundwork helps IBM net $57 million ANZ services deal
IBM has impressed power and automation technologies supplier ABB sufficiently enough in Europe and North America to land an eight-year, $57 million services deal to supply services to ABB Australia and New Zealand.
The agreement, which commences on 1 January 2005, will see IBM Global Services Australia and New Zealand providing ABB with IT infrastructure management and support, and e-business hosting services.
ABB specialises in power technologies and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact.
In 2003, ABB signed a ten-year, US$1.1 billion infrastructure outsourcing contract with IBM Global Services covering Europe and North America. The new contract sees the extension of this global relationship to Australia and New Zealand, which will provide ABB with a solid base for its IT infrastructure in Asia Pacific.
Under the local contract, IBM Global Services will focus on the delivery of desktop, server and network management to ABB. IBM will migrate 40 of ABB’s 110 servers to an e-business hosting environment at an IBM data centre in Sydney. This will allow ABB to access processing power and storage capacity on demand across the region.
In addition, the contract includes server consolidation, helpdesk services and disaster recovery services. IBM will support more than 1500 PCs across 42 locations in Australia and 14 locations in New Zealand. As part of the agreement, 19 ABB staff will move to IBM.
John Gaskell, country manager for ABB Australia and New Zealand, commented: “The connection between ABB and IBM is based on more than just IT delivery. We collaborate on account management and together deliver industrial solutions to clients. This is a long-term relationship and is part of a global strategy to improve service levels, focus on our core business, reduce costs and establish a greater level of consistency amongst our worldwide divisions.
“The relationship in Europe and North America has given IBM a good commercial understanding of our company. We have more than 12 months of working together overseas, which we believe will help the local transition run smoothly. By expanding our relationship to this market, ABB will benefit from receiving the same service levels in all markets and sharing best practices across our global operations."
Brendon Riley, general manager of IBM Global Services Australia and New Zealand, offered: "ABB will have the ability to quickly scale its infrastructure and staff resources on demand so it can respond more rapidly to customer demands and growth opportunities, and reduce its risk. In addition, ABB will have access to a large team of skilled IBM IT professionals and business consultants who can assist with any projects that arise."
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