Saint-Gobain Selects IBM to Modernize Its Technology Infrastructure to Support Growth in Brazil, Argentina and Chile

The Company Is Outsourcing Its Datacenter Operations With IBM to Support New Demands and Business Expansion in the Region



SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - Aug 2008: IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced that Saint-Gobain, one of the largest industrial groups in Latin America, has signed an agreement with IBM in Brazil to outsource its entire IT infrastructure. Through the agreement, with an initial duration of five years, Saint-Gobain expects to ensure predictability of IT costs, with focus on cost reduction and strict control, as well as support the fast growth of its business in Brazil, Argentina and Chile.

Saint-Gobain conducted a study that demonstrated feasibility of outsourcing, and chose IBM as the most efficient service provider to meet its identified needs. “Because it is a dynamic environment, where new demands arise all the time, we decided to replicate here the service outsourcing model implemented in the headquarters in France. This will allow us to gain more flexibility, and focus our efforts and investments on our core business,” explains José Luiz Machado, Saint-Gobain CIO in Brazil. “The contract was signed using the unit price times quantity used pricing model, in which Saint-Gobain will perform monthly payments according to the service utilization.”

IBM will be responsible for storage on demand hosting services, administration, support and IT systems management. The contract also includes migration of all servers installed at Saint-Gobain headquarters in São Paulo to two datacenters of IBM’s Global Delivery Center (GDC), in Hortolândia. “Thus, all the critical applications supporting the business will run in our service provision center,” says Márcio Corte Fior, IBM Brazil project executive.

In addition to providing more business flexibility, the project will reduce operational risks through quality improvement and a better control of the services provided by IBM, and provide cost reduction and support to the expected Group’s growth in the next years. Saint-Gobain plans to gradually start using IBM’s infrastructure, located in Hortolândia, in October 2008, and fully deactivate its two datacenters by March 2009. The current Saint-Gobain infrastructure team, which currently has 37 professionals responsible for IT Operations including production, support, architecture and projects, will now focus on business expansion, identifying needs and defining strategies.

The agreement was signed in June of 2008.