BEIJING, July 14, 2005 - Cisco Systems® announced that the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), one of the four largest state-owned banks in China, has chosen Cisco® as its networking solution provider for the data center project in Beijing. IBM worked collaboratively with Cisco for the Beijing data center, which is part of the ABC's strategy for integrating data sources nationwide, with plans for a second center to follow in Shanghai. The new initiative will lead to a more secure, stable and resilient business environment, along with enhanced productivity and operational efficiency.
In April 2004, Cisco unveiled the Business Ready Data Center initiative which helps companies to protect, optimize and grow their businesses. This initiative supports immediate data center demands such as consolidation, business continuity and disaster recovery, while laying the foundation for on-demand information technology (IT) strategies. It offers a cohesive architectural approach to data center solutions, which include data and storage networking, data center interconnection, network system intelligence, and embedded application and storage services.
IBM and Cisco offer the 'Cisco Business Ready Data Center optimized with IBM for the On-Demand Operating Environment' initiative, which is designed and tested to help customers reduce data center operating expenses, improve application performance and enable faster delivery of services and applications, all by unifying IT and networking infrastructures.
The ABC has identified nationwide data integration as one of the main tasks in the development of its e-business and a critical step in the informatization of the bank. By enabling effective integrated management and in-depth analysis of data resources, the implementation will make data communication and integration between different systems possible, allowing for maximized data utilization. For example, under the old system, installing an application system in all 36 provincial centers would have taken a year, but will only require a month in the new data center.
Raymond Lau, vice president of Cisco Systems (China) commented: "Teaming up with IBM from the very beginning helped ensure a through understanding of ABC's requirements. Taking advantage of the strengths of both companies' solution and resources will help drive project success from the initial planning stage through to the implementation and maintenance stages. Cisco values the working relationship we have forged with the ABC, and looks forward to more opportunities to use our experience in serving global financial institutions in the advancement of China's banking industry."
The partnership between Cisco and the ABC began with the establishment of the ABC's national backbone network and its major sub-branch networks, for which Cisco was the primary equipment provider. In selecting Cisco again, ABC has adopted Cisco's industry-leading solutions, and well-established products and technologies.
