Infonet Supports Globalization of ERP and CRM Systems for Armstrong
Company Optimizes its Communications, Information Technology Worldwide
biz.yahoo.com
EL SEGUNDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 24, 2001--Infonet Services Corp. (NYSE:IN; FSE:IN), a leading provider of global communications services for multinationals, today announced that it is providing comprehensive worldwide network services for Armstrong World Industries.
To ensure that the company can optimally build and distribute its products globally, Armstrong is deploying its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems over Infonet's global network to 160 locations throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia Pacific.
The new services also support Armstrong's initiative to consolidate its many disparate networks resulting from the acquisition and divesting of companies over the past several years.
Armstrong Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ACK - news) is a global leader in the design, innovation and manufacture of floors and ceilings and the parent of Armstrong World Industries. Based in Lancaster, Pa., Armstrong has approximately 15,000 employees worldwide. In 2000, Armstrong's net sales totaled more than $3 billion.
Infonet's solution is based on global network services offering reliable, stable and proven technologies that also guarantee high levels of service. Through Infonet's Application Defined Networking (ADN) service, Armstrong has been able to prioritize network traffic, guaranteeing that its mission-critical ERP and CRM applications take precedence over other mission-supporting applications.
To ensure that all network requirements of these key enterprise applications are achieved, Infonet employed its state-of-the-art toolkit called the Network Analysis Program (NAP). Utilizing Infonet's patent-pending methodology, NAP consultants collected, profiled and analyzed the data traffic of Armstrong's network applications.
Baselining Armstrong's existing network performance, Infonet modeled the behavior and applications, then calculated the business benefits of alternative network designs utilizing Infonet's proprietary ROI Solution Builder software. The final analysis is designed to eliminate either over or under provisioning of Armstrong's network.
As a result, the network was configured based on the performance requirements of the company's enterprise applications requirements, thereby maximizing value and performance, in addition to generating a strong ROI for Armstrong.
According to Bill Hutchinson, Armstrong's manager of Infrastructure Services, ``It is important to have a global ERP system with a completely robust and reliable network behind it. Infonet's NAP tools and methodology allowed Armstrong to optimize the cost and global availability of products, satisfying customer needs and growing our market share.''
Going forward Armstrong can now correctly prioritize its network traffic to allow those applications that are most critical -- such as enterprise resource planning and ordering systems -- to take precedence over any other mission-supporting applications.
NAP has also enabled Armstrong to evaluate applications in terms of quality of service and allowed Hutchinson to determine how to allocate his scarce resources.
``NAP has helped us to fine tune our network, place emphasis where it needs to be and significantly lower our costs,'' observed Hutchinson.
``Infonet's ability to deliver networking in places that are a challenge for some global carriers has impressed us,'' continued Hutchinson. ``They are able to come up with solutions, install connections and provide a robust and reliable network, while reducing costs by up to 40%. That's truly impressive,'' he concluded. |
