AkzoNobel,
market leader in global paints and coatings and major producer of
specialty chemicals, optimizes performance through IT services provided
by Orange
Business Services. The company signed a multimillion euro, 5-year
contract extension with Orange Business Services. The agreement covers
secure and scalable IT infrastructure services that will support
AkzoNobel in reaching its objectives as a global company, connecting
50,000 employees across 1,200-plus sites in dozens of countries.
A robust and flexible network to support AkzoNobel’s global
operations and expansion
AkzoNobel’s extension with Orange Business Services is the result of a
successful ten-year collaboration between both companies. The new
agreement contains a scalable private network for AkzoNobel’s existing
1200-plus sites, including a global security solution. Also included are
managed LAN services, managed application acceleration services and a
fully managed immersive telepresence solution for 11 main offices around
the globe to enhance global collaboration. These services are covered by
Integrated Service Management and the dedicated Orange 24x7 helpdesk,
including enhanced capabilities to support multiple local languages for
selected emerging regions in Latin America and China.
Moreover, one of AkzoNobel’s ambitions is to build on its leadership and
grow towards 50% of total revenues coming from high-growth markets – a
goal that Orange Business Services is optimally positioned to support
based on its unrivalled global reach and presence, as well as continued
strategic investments.
Optimized performance, foundation for global consolidation and
innovation
AkzoNobel is progressing to accelerate its strategy of consolidating the
global business-critical applications within the IT landscape,
supporting its global business processes. Through the integrated use of
various global networking components combined with application
acceleration technology, this agreement helps AkzoNobel to reach those
objectives by increasing transparency and agility, while optimizing
performance and saving costs.
“We are constantly looking for ways to better leverage our global scale,
focus on end-user segments and to support further growth in both mature
and high-growth markets,” said Pieter Schoehuijs, CIO AkzoNobel. “Orange
Business Services is the right partner to support us in reaching these
ambitions. We’ve been working together for ten years now and during this
period, Orange Business Services has been on the forefront when it comes
to reliable and innovative IT solutions globally. Orange Business
Services has proven to understand our business requirements, matching
those to the right IT solutions, helping us achieve our goals.”
“We are very happy with the extension of AkzoNobel, allowing us to
continue bringing real business value to one of the world’s leading
companies as well as our longtime client,” said Helmut Reisinger, senior
vice president, Orange Business Services Europe, Russia & CIS. “The
agreement which additionally includes enhancements to our global
delivery SLAs, underpins our industry leading position in customer
satisfaction and strengthens our unwavering commitment to operational
excellence. Through continuous improvement and innovation we’re able to
support AkzoNobel in further consolidations that will drive agility and
cost reduction. We are fully committed to support the company in this
journey.”
About AkzoNobel
AkzoNobel is a leading global paints and coatings company and a major
producer of specialty chemicals. We supply industries and consumers
worldwide with innovative products and are passionate about developing
sustainable answers for our customers. Our portfolio includes well-known
brands such as Dulux, Sikkens, International and Eka. Headquartered in
Amsterdam, the Netherlands, we are consistently ranked as one of the
leaders in the area of sustainability. With operations in more than 80
countries, our 50,000 people around the world are committed
to delivering leading products and technologies to meet the growing
demands of our fast-changing world.
About Orange Business Services
Orange Business Services, the Orange branch dedicated to B2B services,
is a leading global integrator of communications solutions for
multinational corporations. With the world's largest, seamless network
for voice and data, Orange Business Services reaches 220 countries and
territories with local support in 166. Offering a comprehensive package
of communication services covering cloud computing, enterprise mobility,
M2M, security, unified communications, videoconferencing, and broadband,
Orange Business Services delivers a best-in-class customer experience
across a global landscape. Thousands of enterprise customers and 1.4
million mobile data users rely on an Orange Business Services
international platform for communicating and conducting business. Orange
Business Services was awarded three of the telecom industry’s highest
accolades at the annual World Communication Awards 2012 – Best Global
Operator, Best Cloud Service and the User’s Choice Award. Orange
Business Services is a five-time winner of Best Global Operator. Learn
more at www.orange-business.com
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Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with
annual sales of €43.5 billion in 2012 and has 168,000 employees
worldwide at June 30, 2013. Orange is listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris
(symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).
Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this
material are trademarks of Orange or Orange Brand Services Limited.
Copyright Business Wire 2013