Harvey Nichols outsources machine hosting

Harvey Nichols outsources machine hosting

Retail Assist, the UK's only independent provider of outsourced IT services dedicated solely to the retail industry, has announced that it has secured a 5-year outsourced machine hosting contract from Harvey Nichols.

When Martin Schofield, Head of IT, joined Harvey Nichols in 2003, he faced a number of challenges. These included the need to implement technology that would bring competitive edge to the company. Following a strategic review of incumbent hardware, systems and applications, Schofield embarked upon a programme of systems rationalisation and investment in new solutions, including the acquisition of an IBM i-series processor.

Under the terms of the contract recently won in competitive tender, Harvey Nichols has outsourced the management of this machine to Retail Assist, which will be housed at Retail Assist's Northampton Data Centre. Their responsibilities cover machine housing, operations and support.

Summarising his reasons for selecting Retail Assist, Schofield commented, "Retail Assist was a natural choice for us. We have valuable experience of working together and Retail Assist could offer us high-calibre skills and experience in optimising the IBM i-series environment."

Past projects for Harvey Nichols include the reengineering of JDA Arthur Planning System and the development of a new database to support buying activity worldwide. In both cases, the retailer felt that its investment in specialist skills from Retail Assist had resulted in a more innovative and cost-effective solution that met the needs of the business going forward.

Commenting on Retail Assist's experience of hosting, managing and optimising the IBM i-series machines, Schofield added, "This is a sophisticated computing environment and, to get the best out of it, we were looking for a company with a good track record. We were able to talk to other clients of Retail Assist to reassure ourselves that this was an area of their expertise."

Alan Morris, Managing Director at Retail Assist, concludes, "We are delighted to move forward our relationship with Harvey Nichols and to support Martin Schofield and his team in their drive to gain further competitive advantage for the business."

 

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