Sapa signs five-year services agreement to build global operations with IBM

OSLO, Norway, July 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Sapa, the global leader in the delivery of aluminum solutions, has signed a five-year global services agreement with IBM (IBM: NYSE) to operate the IT infrastructure for all of its 200 locations around the world.  With the new agreement, which covers services for servers and workstations supporting 11,000 employees worldwide, Sapa will be able to use a cloud infrastructure including SoftLayer, an IBM company, for new workloads to support its rapid growth and expansion into new geographies.

"As one of the largest companies in Norway, Sapa requires a high level of flexibility and scalability. We are delighted that Sapa has once again placed its trust in us, and on a larger scale, expanded our relationship with IBM cloud solutions," said Arne Norheim, Country General Manager of IBM Norway. "This contract demonstrates how IBM's global delivery model is helping our clients advance their global strategy. The agreement almost doubles our commitment to Sapa, which has been outsourcing much of its IT infrastructure to IBM for six years."

"Standardization, flexibility and delivery performance are key factors in the contract, which is of great strategic importance to our business following the merger between Sapa's and Hydro's extrusion operations in 2013," said Espen Falla, Chief Information Officer at Sapa. "IBM's delivery makes it possible for Sapa to move from two very different IT infrastructures into a single globally integrated environment, with common processes and applications."

The outsourcing contract was signed on June 6, 2014. It includes all of Sapa's IT, with a particular focus on expanding Sapa's IT delivery model with new cloud solutions that improve security and mobile device management. The contract will remain in place for five years.

Increased Flexibility
The outsourcing contract with Sapa is built on IBM's global delivery model, which provides standardized IT services and centralized administration. This ensures that Sapa maintains a high level of availability, flexibility and security.

"'Consumption-based charges' is a modern concept for outsourcing clients, which are transitioning away from a 'fixed charges' model," said IBM's Norheim. "Organizations want to be able to move up and down the cost portfolio in line with fluctuations in their own business. This requires the IT delivery to be more flexible, which is further enabled by the cloud."

"IBM's ability to understand and adapt to Sapa's requirements as our business expands has been central to the partnership," said Sapa's Falla.  "Sapa is a global company, but we have been able to base our agreement in Norway, thanks to IBM's service delivery model, which enables the company to serve us globally. The agreement confirms the efforts both parties have made to extend and expand our relationship."

About IBM
IBM is a global technology company with more than 400,000 employees in 170 countries. The company has supported the public and private sectors in Norway since 1935. Together with its network of partners and suppliers, IBM delivers intelligent solutions to the entire business market — from small companies to Norway's largest corporations.

IBM has played a pioneering role in outsourcing, and has accumulated wide-ranging and in-depth experience in outsourcing delivery to companies around the world.  IBM has one of the world's largest global infrastructures, recently reinforced by the acquisition of SoftLayer. IBM's global services delivery model enables clients to benefit from its global scale, industry insights, best practices, and technology and business investments. IBM has 56 global delivery centers that employ 87,000 service delivery personnel and span more than 30 countries across six continents.  As a result, IBM has become a unique strategic partner, which actively contributes to its clients' commercial and IT strategies.

For more information about IBM, please visit: http://ibm.com/services

About Sapa
Sapa AS delivers solutions within the fields of aluminum extrusion, building systems and precision tubing products. The company is a 50/50 joint venture owned by Orkla ASA and Norsk Hydro ASA, and employs approximately 23,000 people in more than 40 countries worldwide. Sapa's headquarters are located in Oslo, Norway.

Leslie Monreal-Feil
IBM Media Relations, U.S.
+1 561 862 3074
[email protected]

Otto Backer Solberg
IBM Media Relations, Norway
Mobile: +47 4153 5303
[email protected]

Espen Falla
Chief Information Officer, Sapa
Mobile: +47 900 21 222

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SOURCE IBM