IBM said that its acquisition of Danish companies Maersk Data and DMdata has been completed.
The acquisition represents a multi-billion dollar emerging market opportunity as IBM moves aggressively into the Business Performance Transformation Services arena.
IBM also said that it has completed new contracts worth in excess of $1 billion with A.P. Moller – Maersk, one of the world’s largest container shipping companies and Danske Bank, one of the largest banks in the Nordics for the provision of consulting and IT services.
IBM will provide A.P. Moller – Maersk with management consulting, application development and management services in addition to IT Infrastructure services across all platforms. A.P Moller – Maersk will benefit from IBM’s deep industry and technical competencies, innovation, high availability and scalability offered by IBM’s On Demand model. IBM has for some time been running a large global SAP finance implementation project for A.P Moller – Maersk and will now also be responsible for integrating it with the current legacy systems run by Maersk Data.
Danske Bank has selected IBM to manage its worldwide IT infrastructure. As part of the agreement, IBM will provide a resilient infrastructure that will support new technologies to enable Danske Bank to improve service levels and operate with more flexibility. The agreement covers servers, storage, security management, disaster recovery and technical programme management.
The acquisitions will greatly increase IBM’s capabilities in serving clients in the transportation and logistics industry globally while also enhancing its capabilities in areas such as financial services, public sector, healthcare and the food and agriculture industries. The transaction recently received approval from European regulatory authorities. Terms of the acquisitions were not disclosed.
“Being awarded important contracts such as these is a strong endorsement of IBM’s experience and track record in delivering IT services to clients across Europe. Both AP Moller – Maersk and Danske Bank will benefit from IBM’s On Demand model enabling them to respond to changing business needs in a flexible way.” Dominique Cerutti, General Manager, IBM Global Services, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said. “Equally important is our acquisition of Maersk Data and DMdata as it will strengthen our ability to deliver solutions that will enable clients in a number of industries to transform their business.”
Peter Straarup, CEO, Danske Bank said “IBM has demonstrated an understanding of the importance of a resilient infrastructure to ensure continuous stability of operations of our bank. We have already benefited from their support in upgrading our existing IT infrastructure. With this agreement we will be tapping into IBM’s ability to innovate and to provide us with leading edge technologies and services to ensure that our business is able to respond with speed to new business opportunities or challenges in the marketplace.”
“We have a well-established relationship with IBM and we therefore know what they are capable of delivering,” said Jess Soderberg, CEO, A.P. Moller – Maersk. “The A.P. Moller – Maersk and other clients of Maersk Data and DMdata will, through this transaction, benefit from the services of one of the leading IT services and consulting companies in the world. Equally, we are confident that our employees will benefit from development opportunities within IBM.”
A.P. Moller – Maersk is one of the world’s largest container shipping companies. Maersk Data has extensive consulting capabilities in the transportation and logistics industry as well as in public sector, healthcare and food and agriculture. This acquisition will significantly enhance IBM’s transformational consulting capabilities in a number of industries such as the broad transportation and logistics area, enabling IBM to help its clients with their most complex, global logistics challenges.
Founded in 1970, Maersk Data has built a strong regional presence in the Nordics and has extended its operations to the US and the Asia-Pacific region. IBM will establish a Global Transport and Logistics Competence Centre by combining its existing consulting capabilities and the expertise of Maersk Data Transport to benefit A.P. Moller – Maersk and other global clients. The centre will operate as a virtual community harnessing the specialist skills and talents of consultants around the world to address specific client problems in more than 160 countries.
DMdata was established seven years ago in a merger of the IT operations of Maersk Data and Danske Bank. It has established itself as a successful IT services company, providing IT services and facilities management as well as network operations to clients in such areas as transportation, financial services, retail and the public sector. The acquisition of DMdata and its capabilities to manage complex IT infrastructures will enable IBM to establish an On Demand Delivery Centre to serve IBM’s clients in Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Bernie Waldron, General Manager, Maersk Data and DMdata acquisitions, IBM Global Services said “These acquisitions demonstrate how IBM is building business consulting and IT skills in key areas to meet the emerging transformation needs of its clients. Based on deep industry insight and advanced technical skills, IBM will now be able to help clients globally address complex transformation objectives in a number of industries such as transport and logistics. In doing so, IBM is opening up a new level of client work and potential SG&A spending, consistent with our goal of addressing client needs with IBM’s new Business Performance Transformation Services.”
murdok | Breaking eBusiness News
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