HP has announced a new service offer and competitive financing solutions for companies in Malta. The initiative will help organisations deliver on their IT projects in an environment where companies are lacking capital investment funds and bracing for yet further reductions in operational cost and resources.
The three aspects of the offering surround the creation of a multi-billion euro- backed financing solution to meet the capital requirements of organisations across the Central and Eastern European region, including Malta; it is the only 'utility infrastructure' service offering that enables organisations to rapidly scale-down as well as scale-up their technology infrastructure throughout the economic cycle - paying only for what they use; and application management services allow companies to reduce operational costs while increasing service levels.
"The key objective of this initiative is to preserve the competitiveness of our customers in this region by ensuring that the cost pressures they face today do not impact their ability to take full advantage of the upturn when it comes," said Michael Eberhardt, vice president, Central Eastern Region for EDS, an HP company that delivers business solutions to its clients.
"In tough economic times, IT organisations need to reduce costs and they must do it fast," according to Gartner analyst Frank Ridder.
"Infrastructure utility solutions, such as infrastructure utilities for ERP, support these needs because they are flexible, high quality and cost-efficient. The short- and long-term value of these offerings goes beyond pure financing solutions, which often deliver attractive short-term benefits but lack long-term flexibility. Nevertheless, financing solutions can help organisations to leverage existing investments when transitioning into infrastructure utility solutions."
The new programme helps to transform customers' IT environments, including infrastructure, application and operations. It supports both customers who want to operate their own technology infrastructure, as well as customers who are open to purchasing more comprehensive sourcing solutions for additional flexibility.
HP provides financial services deferring infrastructure cost and software license cost, based on low rates and flexible financing options. In addition, HP has launched the new Adaptive Infrastructure Services (AIS) - Utility Sourcing in Malta, complemented by the Application Management Services offering to ensure operational cost savings and the flexibility to scale the IT environment (down or up) with changing business needs. Additionally, the financing options enable companies to spread the implementation cost throughout the duration of the contract.
The AIS Utility Sourcing offering provides customers a wide range of modular IT services for infrastructure operations and for managed applications.
The services are delivered out of highly secure and redundant HP data centres, and are billed monthly based on usage, eliminating almost all fixed costs, and capital investment. Furthermore, the offering helps to reduce operational costs up to 30 per cent, due to the shared resources and HP's economies of scale. A web portal allows the customer to adjust service levels and service amounts at any point in time, providing maximum scalability.
The Application Management Services are an important component of the programme, delivered by HP's team of global experts. With an optimal mix of local and resources, HP balances cultural needs and local, legal requirements. HP's industry experience, seamless, ongoing operations, worldwide coverage and competitive pricing assure customers a stable, efficient application environment that meets the service levels required by the business.
In addition, cost savings can be realised by incorporating the implementation with the ongoing service contract. Clients also have the ability to finance the software and license costs with HP Financial Services to preserve and optimise cash flow, the company pointed out.