Pretoria, 22 Jun 2006
South Africa National Parks (SANParks) has entered into an outsourcing agreement for its national IT infrastructure with Datacentrix, IT solutions and services provider, enabling the organisation to focus on its core business. The scope of the outsourcing agreement includes the full management and support of the server, networking and end-user environment, as well as the provision of laptops, desktops and servers.
SANParks manages a system of 21 national parks, which represents the indigenous fauna, flora, landscapes and associated cultural heritage of the country. These include Kruger, Table Mountain, Marakele, Golden Gate, Addo Elephant, Tsitsikamma, Knysna, Wilderness and Augrabies.
According to SANParks Chief Operating Officer, Sydney Soundy, outsourcing its IT infrastructure offers SANParks the ability to focus on its core business of park management. "With IT being an enabler for SANParks, we need access to technical expertise and as such, we have opted for a service provider that can deliver the technical knowledge and best practices needed."
The benefits of outsourcing, Soundy adds, are numerous. "By opting for an outsourcing model, SANParks can mitigate risk, sharing it with the service provider. Leveraging economies of scale means that we should see the cost benefits associated with outsourcing outweighing those linked to managing the environment ourselves. The pricing around an outsourcing project is also generally more competitive, as service providers can leverage their relationships with vendors."
"Information is critical to any organisation and operating the technology can be a drain on valuable resources. To remain competitive, organisations like SANParks are choosing to work with IT partners who understand their needs," says Stewart Barker, Services MD at Datacentrix. "Datacentrix`s outsourcing model allows a shift in management`s attention toward strategy, co-ordination and the skills that promote competitive success. This approach also provides real advantages in terms of access to skills, efficiency and peace of mind and results in flexibility, faster response times, cost savings and task standardisation. Datacentrix is proud to be associated with an organisation of the stature and importance of SANParks."
SANParks` stringent evaluation process incorporated a number of core elements required for the selection of an outsourcing partner. These included the commercial and financial standing of the company applying, its technical capabilities, the socio-economic contributions of the organisation and its pricing structure.
Says Soundy: "Datacentrix scored very well overall and SANParks was particularly impressed by its Empowerdex `A` rating, technical abilities and the competitive pricing offering."
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