Turin, Italy, June 30, 2005- IBM and FIAT Group today announced an information technology agreement worth almost 200 million euro a year for 9 years. Under the agreement, IBM will manage key areas of FIAT Group’s IT activities and business process transformation projects and will assume full control of Global Value, the equal joint venture founded by FIAT Business Solutions and IBM Italia in 2001.
The new agreement will assure FIAT of the governance of its IT activities, as it benefits from the innovative use of state of the art technology and specialist consulting from IBM, and resulting in operational flexibility, cost reductions and improved efficiencies.
IBM will transform FIAT's current IT infrastructure, through hardware consolidation and optimisation, implementing an on demand environment. The Turin Integrated Delivery Centre will be able to run standardised operations with benefits in terms of costs and efficiency.
FIAT will have direct access to IBM’s global experience and also will benefit from IBM’s expertise on best practices and solutions for the automotive industry developed by IBM’s research laboratories and International Automotive Competence Centres.
IBM will optimise the skills and resources from the Global Value Joint Venture and throughout the international organisations to deliver high value services to the FIAT Group, with the flexibility to support FIAT’s business needs.
About Fiat
Founded in 1899, Fiat is an industrial enterprise focused on the automotive sector, serving customers in more than 190 countries around the world with an annual turnover of about 47 billion euro. With some 160 000 employees in 121 R&D centers and 180 plants worldwide, the Fiat Group is a global leader in the production of passenger cars, agricultural and construction equipment, industrial vehicles, production systems and automotive components.
The automotive activities account for 82% of total sales.
The Automobile Sector, led by Fiat Auto, markets automobiles under the Fiat, Lancia and Alfa Romeo brands and light commercial vehicles under the Fiat brand. Ferrari and Maserati are also part of the Fiat Group. They produce luxury sports cars that excel for their exclusive characteristics, technology and performance.
The Agricultural and Construction Equipment Sector, which is led by CNH, is active in the field of tractors and agricultural equipment through the Case IH, New Holland and Steyr brands and in the construction equipment business through the Case, New Holland and Kobelco brands.
Iveco is the lead company of the Commercial Vehicles Sector, which markets complete lines of commercial vehicles (Iveco and Seddon Atkinsons brands), busses (Iveco and Irisbus brands) and firefighting vehicles (Carniva, Iveco and Magirus brands).
For more information visit www.fiatgroup.com
About IBM Global Services
IBM Global Services is the world's largest information technology services and consulting provider. Some 190,000 professionals in more than 160 countries help clients integrate information technology with business value -- from the business transformation and industry expertise of IBM Business Consulting Services to hosting, infrastructure, technology design and training services. IBM Global Services delivers integrated, flexible and resilient processes across companies and through business partners, enabling clients to save money and transform their businesses to be more competitive. For more information, visit www.ibm.com/services.
For more information please contact:
FIAT:
Franco Sodano - franco.sodano@fiatgroup.com – Ph. +39 011 00 63088
Raffaello Porro – raffaello.porro@fiatgroup.com – Ph. +39 011 00 62743
IBM
Tineke Mertens
IBM Nederland
Mob: +31 6 200 150 92
tineke.mertens@nl.ibm.com