AkzoNobel Chooses ABeam Consulting as its Asia SAP Deployment Partner

TOKYO, JAPAN – July 14, 2009 – AkzoNobel Decorative Paints has chosen ABeam Consulting to roll out SAP throughout its Asian operations, ABeam announced today. ABeam, a global provider of operational consulting services, will provide a core team with SAP expertise to work alongside AkzoNobel in Asia.

The scope of the project will cover key business areas including sales, finance, manufacturing, planning and procurement, and is expected to be up and running by 2012.

Starting with a deployment in China, ABeam will provide expertise and local input by supplementing AkzoNobel’s existing ‘Trinity Program’ to ensure a successful rollout of SAP. ABeam was chosen due to its status as the leading SAP consultancy in Asia and its extensive SAP project experience, expertise and heritage, having already completed 51 rollouts in Asia, and with 24 in progress.

AkzoNobel’s paint division is the world’s largest global paints and coatings company. Its Asian division comprises 1,500 users across 13 manufacturing sites, spread across a number of countries; including China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia.

The division has a variety of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems across the globe that need enhanced functionality, reduced cost base and platform growth to realize the full value of the business. The Trinity Deployment Program will be based on the “Saturn” SAP solution, which has already proved a success in seven of AkzoNobel’s European businesses. “The Saturn SAP rollout is an integral part of our strategy, and is a key enabler for the Decorative Paints business to meet its strategic goals.” said Dave Huson, Trinity Program Director, AkzoNobel. “ABeam’s reputation, deep experience, and track record of success on similar projects in Asia made them an obvious partner choice.”

“AkzoNobel’s consolidation drive and growth has raised the need for enhancements to its business functionality,” said Alastair Clifford-Jones, Managing Director, Global Clients and Markets for ABeam Consulting. “The project will help the company achieve this by streamlining its processes and systems. This will ensure the company is poised for further growth. As a global company, AkzoNobel has experienced rapid growth in emerging markets such as Asia, Eastern Europe and South and Central America following extensive business consolidation. It intends to use its scale to further develop its leading positions in technology and sustainability.”

About ABeam Consulting
ABeam Consulting provides business transformation services that create strategic advantage, improve business processes, leverage technology innovation, and enhance organizational performance for leading multinational and domestic companies worldwide. ABeam partners with clients to diagnose and solve their real challenges with solutions that combine industry and operational best practices with technical expertise. Pragmatic approaches ensure that clients gain measurable value more quickly. Headquartered in Tokyo, ABeam’s 3,800 professionals serve 700 clients in 21 countries. For more information, please visit http://www.abeam.com.

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