Getronics, a leading international Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Company, has won a EUR 40 million contract to completely refit the entire UK branch infrastructure of Abbey National plc (“Abbey”). The contract calls for Getronics to source and deploy hardware and infrastructure to Abbey’s entire network of 741 branches and also to its large office buildings, thereby assisting the company to deliver on its strategy of focusing entirely on UK's personal financial services.
Pilots took place during December 2003 with the full implementation, which is expected to take approximately four months to complete, commencing in early 2004. It will entail the procurement of approximately 40,000 desktop devices including personal computers, flat screens, laser and network printers, as well as 9,000 Getronics PR2e passbook printers. Getronics will install a new Windows XP platform designed to run Abbey’s own software, replacing the existing Windows 98 platform. Getronics’ staff have also assisted in the software development part of the project working with Abbey-led development teams.
Bill Gibbons, Director Technology Services and Support for Abbey said: “We needed an experienced supplier who understood the Abbey environment and who had experience of helping us to deliver similar scale changes to help us meet the challenges of a major systems upgrade so that we are able to offer customers the best possible service. “It is essential in the world of financial services to deploy technology that gives you a competitive edge, and we believe that these new systems will enable us to deliver that.”
Roger Whitehead, Managing Director, Getronics UK and Ireland said: “This is the latest project to come out of the twenty year relationship with Abbey. Such a long-standing relationship enables us to have an unprecedented understanding of the company’s infrastructure requirements. “The challenge of deploying new platforms to such a large number of locations with minimal disruption is one which we are looking forward to and which Abbey and its customers will benefit from.”
About Getronics
With 23,000 employees in over 30 countries and forecast revenues of circa EUR 2.7 billion in 2003, Getronics is one of the world's leading providers of vendor independent Information and Communication Technology (ICT) solutions and services. Getronics today combines the capabilities of the original Dutch company with those of Wang Global, acquired in 1999, and of the systems and services division of Olivetti. Getronics is ranked second worldwide in network and desktop outsourcing and fourth worldwide in network consulting and integration (Source: IDC 2002-2003).
Getronics designs, integrates and manages ICT infrastructures and business solutions for many of the world's largest global and local companies and organisations, helping them maximise the value of their information technology investments. Getronics headquarters are in Amsterdam, with regional offices in Boston and Singapore. Getronics’ shares are traded on Euronext Amsterdam (‘GTN’).
For further information about Getronics, visit www.getronics.com.