International stationer improves business flexibility and real-time collaboration with Interoute

London, 29 March, 2011 – Pelikan International, a manufacturer of stationery and high-end writing instruments, has accelerated the delivery of new stationary products to market by improving the real-time collaboration between its German and Swiss sales and Research & Development (R&D) sites. By placing its ICT infrastructure and hosting services in Interoute’s pan-European private cloud, employees can now share access to essential applications and critical information in real-time - speeding its reaction to market changes and evolving business needs.

Previously, Pelikan operated a number of disparate IT systems which were expensive and did not provide the agility the company needed to respond to market changes. By building a dedicated network between its crucial sales and R&D sites, Pelikan has reduced costs and now has the flexibility to connect new offices to its centralised network, and facilitate regional product development.

“Our business is continuously evolving and we need more flexibility as we grow. We wanted an easy-to-implement solution that provides us with outstanding reply times,” said Arturo Ianniciello, Head of Infrastructure at ISD Production and R&D at Pelikan Hardcopy Production AG. “With Interoute’s flexible infrastructure, we have the opportunity to use dynamic technologies that enable us to respond to market changes or easily move an office or department. We have already realised savings in several countries and expect to obtain a further 30% overall saving in the coming year.”

“Pelikan operates in a competitive international consumer market where speed to market on new product lines is essential,” said Jan Louwes, Executive Vice President - Sales & Marketing at Interoute. “Operating multiple sites and product lines across multiple regions, Pelikan needs to know exactly what is happening on its network in real-time. With a centralised ICT infrastructure, it has this insight and is able to quickly and efficiently react to market changes, develop and launch innovative product lines and enter new regions – and take the competitive edge.”

Within its pan-European cloud, Interoute is deploying an IPVPN network over MPLS for Pelikan, which includes Internet access with firewall, remote access for mobile users and a web filter.

Following the success of the initial ICT infrastructure, which was completed in 2010, Interoute is now extending the MPLS network service to additional European sites, implementing a Storage Connect solution, which allows for replication, recovery and archiving of data, as well as a global VoIP network with Interoute One.