Morrisons stages major IT role out

In one of the biggest IT roll outs to be seen in Europe this year, Wm. Morrisons has recently enhanced and restructured its IT function.

To support future growth and improved operational efficiency, the UK's fifth largest supermarket retailer has created a new IT hub at its Bradford-based Hilmore House HQ. The move has seen the company consolidate a number of teams previously operating out of different sites into one centralised location, as well as bring on board some 300 external consultants.

In order to accommodate the IT centre which looks set to become a new benchmark for the retail industry, Morrisons had to redevelop a significant area of its 330,000 sq ft head office in a project spanning 3 years and 9 phases. Throughout the work, and the subsequent relocation of the staff concerned, the provision of IT services continued uninterrupted.

The retailer attributes a major proportion of the project's success to its office design and delivery partner - the TSK group. TSK previously worked with the retailer to fit out the interior of Hilmore House in 2006 with the resultant environment being short-listed for a British Council of Offices (BCO) award in the Best Corporate Workplace category.

For this particular project, TSK not only redesigned the area that would become home to the new IT centre, but also oversaw all aspects of the required environment's implementation and even handled the relocation of the affected staff.

Speaking of the completed project, Evelyn Leeming, Facilities Manager at Morrisons commented: "There's no doubt that the centralisation and expansion of our IT function has been a huge task, however it has been completed efficiently and with no impact on our day-to-day operations. At least some of the credit for this most go to TSK and the additional value and insight they supplied. The net result will now be significant gains in terms of service delivery, operational efficiency, space usage and ultimately, property costs."

Andy Burke, Group Commercial Director at the TSK group, added: "TSK prides itself on the level of repeat business it enjoys from existing clients and views this as a testament to our success in meeting their needs. We are delighted to have continued our partnership with Morrisons and especially on such a demanding and high-profile project."