CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
13 May 2009
Implementation Investments
Five-year partnership will see TCS helping Volkswagen Group UK consolidate in order to ‘sell more vehicles, sell more parts, drive down costs'
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced that it has been selected to deliver IT transformation and support services to Volkswagen Group UK Ltd in a five year contract.
TCS will leverage its Global Network Delivery Model™ to provide onshore and offshore IT support and transformation services for the Volkswagen Group’s operations throughout the UK, and across the brands Audi, SEAT, Škoda, Volkswagen Passenger Cars and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. TCS will support the Volkswagen Group in its business transformation program to meet its aim to ‘sell more cars, sell more parts, drive down costs’. TCS will support all brands within the Group as they move to a consolidated, standardised business platform, enabling geographic mobility of Volkswagen Group UK employees, increased flexibility, and cost reduction. This is the first time Volkswagen has implemented an onshore-offshore model for its IT systems.
TCS has already started working with Volkswagen Group UK, and was tested within the first week on the project when a major power outage at the UK head office in Milton Keynes caused many of the Group’s systems to fail on a Friday evening. From Milton Keynes, the company controls sourcing, marketing and distribution of all vehicles and parts in the UK, therefore the health of its IT systems is critical to the company’s operations across the country. TCS, already intimately acquainted with every corner of the system and piece of equipment, mobilised a global team to work overnight onsite and from India, successfully recovering all of the Group’s IT services in time for Saturday’s trading.
“We couldn’t have better proof that we’re in safe hands with TCS,” said Nick Gaines, Group IS director, Volkswagen Group UK. “We have been deeply impressed by the dedication and collaborative approach taken both by the local and India-based teams. This gives me great confidence in the future relationship between our businesses.”
“Understandably, we’re seeing an increasing focus on consolidation and cost optimization in the current economic climate,” said Duncan Aitchison, partner & president, TPI. “Companies with global operations and disparate brands need to think about streamlining their operations, in the way Volkswagen is doing, to survive and thrive in the future.”
“In this challenging environment, organizations are looking to increase efficiency and flexibility in order to stay competitive,” said A. S. Lakshminarayanan, Vice-President and Head of Europe, TCS. “By helping Volkswagen Group UK consolidate their IT systems onto a single platform, and harness the power of our Global Network Delivery Model™, we are not only streamlining their infrastructure, but also their wider businesses processes. In the current economic climate, ensuring a business is fit, well and lean, in this way, is the key to success.”
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