gen-i Selected as Supplier for Air NZ Group IT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

gen-i Selected as Preferred Supplier for
Air New Zealand Group IT Infrastructure

AUCKLAND, March 5, 2001 – Internet integrator, gen-i limited, today announced it has been selected as the preferred supplier for the largest technology contract awarded to a New Zealand IT company, with an agreement to manage some 11,500 workstations for the Air New Zealand Ansett Group.

The contract is expected to generate multi million dollar savings for the airline over the next three years.

The contract, which includes supplying PCs, terminals and servers for the newly merged airline, will see gen-i provide full facilities management services, configuration, optimisation and support services to Air New Zealand Ansett over a three-year period. A substantial portion of the contracted services will be delivered remotely.

Under the agreement, gen-i will manage all desktops and servers and the airline’s point services, which include bag tagging, kiosks, and some check-in facilities.
gen-i will also provide network storage and backup services.

The contract is expected to save Air New Zealand Ansett around 45% on their desktop infrastructure costs.

Air New Zealand says the contract is a key part of the airline’s focus on reducing IT costs and establishing a sound group IT infrastructure. This infrastructure will enable the integration of the systems and processes used by Air New Zealand and Ansett Australia, and will therefore improve service and reduce costs in the wider business.

Air New Zealand Ansett said it had identified group-wide IT integration as critical to the successful functioning of the airline’s entire business. “In gen-i we have a partner who has already proven it can deliver the results we require at a highly competitive cost. The challenge they faced was to demonstrate that they could do this across both of the airline’s major operating units. They worked hard to convince us of their ability to do this, an airline spokesman said.

gen-i CEO Garth Biggs, said, “We have enjoyed a decade-long relationship with Air New Zealand and are delighted to extend it across the Tasman with this significant contract. It marks a growing international acceptance of the quality of services that we can supply and the value we can deliver.” As well as creating more jobs for the State of Victoria, the contract represents a milestone in gen-i's expansion into the Australian market.

“In 1997, gen-i worked closely with Air New Zealand to develop a world-class desktop service, at the time the largest desktop management project ever initiated in New Zealand. On the back of this contract gen-i also provided project management, technical consulting, software development, network architecture, server administration and procurement services.

"We have a long history with Air New Zealand,” says Mark Hardie, gen-i’s Client Director. “We have an in depth understanding of their business requirements through our project team who were already working in the airline’s business units. Partnering has proved to be an extremely successful method for Air New Zealand to harness the benefits and control the costs of the growth and use of personal computers."

Hardie says the contract win was a result of gen-i adding significant capability to Air New Zealand’s IT infrastructure over recent years, with a proven reduction in the Total Cost of Ownership on the desktops and in the process developing an in-depth understanding of its requirements. “gen-i’s approach is all about understanding the business needs, flexibility, achieving results rapidly and delivering immediate value to clients.”

ENDS

About gen-i
gen-i limited is the first and largest New Zealand-based e-business Internet integrator, focussing on designing, building, implementing and supporting e-business solutions and systems for large corporate customers. With more than 400 people at offices in major centres in New Zealand, gen-i extends customer support worldwide – both online and through a network of service partners.
gen-i has four major areas of focus and expertise: Infrastructure, Ventures, Field Force and Procurement.
gen-i Infrastructure is geared to providing and supporting all the hardware, software and networks required for today’s e-business – and to achieve that in a number of new ways. gen-i Ventures is an Internet innovation operation geared to providing knowledge and experience, including building e-commerce sites, Intranets, extranets and implementing and supporting a wide range of e-business and traditional applications. gen-i field Force is New Zealand’s leading technology engineering onsite capability, expertly trained and ready to deploy or maintain the country’s leading technology networks. gen-i Procurement provides a fast, easy and cost-effective way to select, purchase, install and maintain office technologies.
Prior to its name change in 2000, gen-i traded successfully for more than 20 years as Wang New Zealand.

About Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand Limited is the first Australasian airline system incorporating 100 percent ownership of Air New Zealand Domestic, International, Ansett domestic and 49 percent of Ansett International. The group has the scale of a top 20 airline, with projected revenues of $NZ7.8 billion a year and a staff of 22,000. The combined network carries more than 21 million passengers a year and operates over 1000 flights a day to 190 destinations within 20 countries. It has a fleet of 199 aircraft. From the major hubs of Auckland, Melbourne, Sydney and Los Angeles, Air New Zealand Group's international network spans four continents and two hemispheres, extending to the key business centres of Asia, the United States, Europe and Pacific islands. Air New Zealand Group is a member of the 12 airline Star Alliance, the world's largest airline alliance.

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