Bidco Africa Ltd. has chosen IBM
(NYSE: IBM) to provide IT systems
delivered as a service and managed remotely to help drive the client’s
investment in its core business and expansion across Africa.
Bidco is East Africa’s leading consumer goods manufacturer and marketer, focused on the production of cooking oil and hygiene products.
Bidco is East Africa’s leading consumer goods manufacturer and marketer, focused on the production of cooking oil and hygiene products.
The company’s products serve consumers across 15
African countries touching over 100 million people daily. The cost savings from
shifting its IT infrastructure management to IBM will free up capital for
expansion into more countries as part of Bidco Africa’s 2015 growth plan.
The deal with IBM is to allow Bidco to improve its business application performance by 40 percent, lower capital expenditure and improve return on investment by 20 percent.
Entrusting IBM with the management of its technology infrastructure and operations will enable Bidco to shift its attention to extending its leadership role and to expanding to more countries in Africa. The agreement also will allow Bidco to benefit from continual productivity improvements by 40 percent.
“This deal will enhance our competiveness and allow us to focus on what we are good at: innovating manufacturing processes, creating value streams and winning the market. We are not a technology company, we are not good at IT but we are good at making edible oils, fats and hygiene products,” said Bidco CEO Vimal Shah.
The deal with IBM is to allow Bidco to improve its business application performance by 40 percent, lower capital expenditure and improve return on investment by 20 percent.
Entrusting IBM with the management of its technology infrastructure and operations will enable Bidco to shift its attention to extending its leadership role and to expanding to more countries in Africa. The agreement also will allow Bidco to benefit from continual productivity improvements by 40 percent.
“This deal will enhance our competiveness and allow us to focus on what we are good at: innovating manufacturing processes, creating value streams and winning the market. We are not a technology company, we are not good at IT but we are good at making edible oils, fats and hygiene products,” said Bidco CEO Vimal Shah.
“Let us focus on what we do best and outsource the
rest,” he added.
Bidco first tapped IBM’s infrastructure in 2010 when it purchased IBM Power System servers and IBM DS3400 storage. IBM’s commitment to Kenya through its investment in the first IBM Research Lab in Africa, the Kenya office and Africa regional hub based in Nairobi, were also critical factors in Bidco’s decision to continue and expand its services relationship with IBM.
Bidco first tapped IBM’s infrastructure in 2010 when it purchased IBM Power System servers and IBM DS3400 storage. IBM’s commitment to Kenya through its investment in the first IBM Research Lab in Africa, the Kenya office and Africa regional hub based in Nairobi, were also critical factors in Bidco’s decision to continue and expand its services relationship with IBM.
“The good thing about this deal is also that it
allows us to have the latest technology available in the market without
incurring capital costs. IBM will automatically upgrade our equipment every
three years to the highest standards available,” Shah added.
“It’s a win-win-win-win for Bidco,” he said.
“Kenya’s economy is at an inflection point, and we
are seeing many local companies choosing innovative technology services to
drive local and cross-border expansion for their products and services,” said
IBM General Manager for East Africa Nicholas Nesbitt. “Our engagement with
Bidco is a perfect example of the innovative technology services IBM can
deliver and the value we can provide in helping clients benefit from the many
growth opportunities emerging in Africa.”
IBM will transition Bidco’s current systems and
applications to four Power Systems servers, one V7000 Storage system, one Power
Systems Hardware Management Console, two IBM System Storage SAN Switches, and
two IBM Storage tape drives. The systems will be located in Bidco’s data
center, but owned and operated by IBM, which will provide the technology as a
service to the client.
The first phase will involve the migration from existing infrastructure and project management during transition. IBM will then oversee remote monitoring, maintenance and overall delivery of hardware provided as a service, all managed remotely via IBM Global Delivery Centers.
The end-to-end managed services will offer proactive 24-hour monitoring of the infrastructure to improve services, help eliminate unexpected IT-related expenses by providing a predictable billing stream, improve customer experience through enhanced computing capacity and drive seamless performance to all of Bidco’s business users.
A growing number of enterprises across Africa have partnered with IBM to help drive their expansion and overall business plans. IBM has announced over 20 banking deals throughout Africa over the last five years. Within the health sector, Metropolitan Health in South Africa and the Zambia Ministry of Health have tapped IBM solutions to drive their business models.
IBM has a long history in Africa, and is taking its role as a technology leader seriously, helping to boost the capacities of Africa’s people and institutions. In 2013, IBM opened its first African Research Laboratory, the twelfth IBM Research facility in the world, and within the last week announced its thirteenth Research Lab worldwide and second in Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa. In the past five years, the company has set up offices in Angola, Mauritius, Tanzania, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya and now has more than 20 subsidiaries on the continent.
The first phase will involve the migration from existing infrastructure and project management during transition. IBM will then oversee remote monitoring, maintenance and overall delivery of hardware provided as a service, all managed remotely via IBM Global Delivery Centers.
The end-to-end managed services will offer proactive 24-hour monitoring of the infrastructure to improve services, help eliminate unexpected IT-related expenses by providing a predictable billing stream, improve customer experience through enhanced computing capacity and drive seamless performance to all of Bidco’s business users.
A growing number of enterprises across Africa have partnered with IBM to help drive their expansion and overall business plans. IBM has announced over 20 banking deals throughout Africa over the last five years. Within the health sector, Metropolitan Health in South Africa and the Zambia Ministry of Health have tapped IBM solutions to drive their business models.
IBM has a long history in Africa, and is taking its role as a technology leader seriously, helping to boost the capacities of Africa’s people and institutions. In 2013, IBM opened its first African Research Laboratory, the twelfth IBM Research facility in the world, and within the last week announced its thirteenth Research Lab worldwide and second in Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa. In the past five years, the company has set up offices in Angola, Mauritius, Tanzania, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya and now has more than 20 subsidiaries on the continent.
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