FUJITSU – DEMONSTRATING THE ART OF THE POSSIBLE – IN 90 DAYS
By Julian Nettlefold, Editor BATTLESPACE
18 Aug 06. BATTLESPACE Editor visited Fujitsu U.K.’s HQ in Basingstoke to unearth the secrets behind this coy company’s expertise in Defence. We found that Fujitsu has been a long-standing supplier to the U.K. MoD and other defence forces for a long time and has developed a refreshing approach to the manner by which it does business.
Before we go into detail, it is worth understanding that Fujitsu Group is the third largest IT Company in the world, with turnover in excess of $43.2bn and 161,000 employees, operating in 70 countries. Fujitsu Services, the Company’s European-centred IT services organisation has an annual turnover of £2.46bn (€3.59bn) and 19,000 employees operating, in over 20 countries. The company offers a complete range of IT services to both public and private sectors and specialise in delivering large-scale complex projects.
The scale of Fujitsu’s UK Government business is shown by its impressive customer list built up over a 40 year period. Customers include: the MoD and the Intelligence services, the Home Office, DTI, DVLA, DCA, DWP, National Health Service, HM Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue.
In Defence Fujitsu is involved in a number of key projects and is a key partner in the EDS-led DII Atlas Project.
The Future Concepts Centre
“You’ve been hiding your light under a bushel!” the Editor said to Tina Quenault, Chief Technology Officer of Fujitsu services.
“The Future Concepts Centre will give you a good idea of our approach to the manner by which we win business. We do not rely on long-winded study and discussion papers that bog down our staff and customers in a mass of paper and red tape. We see that speed is the essence in developing new ideas and innovative solutions in the race to increase efficiency and, at the same time, to reduce costs. But keeping pace with advances in technology often makes selecting the right solution a challenging and daunting task. And, of course, developing new ideas carries a degree of risk,” Tina Quenault said.
The Future Concepts Centre is situated within the secure List X facilities at Fujitsu in Basingstoke. The Centre is fitted with state-of-the-art technology, in a totally flexible and secure environment. Here, Fujitsu not only demonstrates a wide range of highly complex solutions but also offers a rapid development facility to provide a unique Proof of Concept opportunity, where
ideas, defined by customers, can be prototyped in a totally secure environment.
Facilities at the centre feature virtual support for over 1000 server environments; a Storage Area Network to facilitate the introduction, retirement and rapid resurrection of demonstrations and a fully integrated suite of audio visual presentation tools.
“We define the ‘Art of the Possible’ by converting ideas into realities within 90 days. Experience shows that within 90 days it is possible to prove the feasibility of a concept. Once this information is available, an informed decision regarding further development can be made, based on fact, not guesswork. This timescale ensures that ideas do not stagnate to enable us to prototype solutions to our customers in a timeframe that cuts costs and time.”
“What a refreshing approach from the old system of the long-winded and complex MoD Requirements Structure which requires a long-winded process of cementing the Requirement and provision of funds which, after the project has gone through several stages, is often out-of-date by the time the User gets the system! How do you ensure that the project reaches beyond the concept stage in this short time?” The Editor asked.
“We do this by developing a prototype or pilot, based on an initial concept, to provide a clear insight into the benefits that could be realised, should the customer choose to continue with the programme, we test ideas before committing,” Tina added
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