IBM has announced that Air New Zealand will outsource the storage and facilities management of key IT systems to IBM’s new $80M Reliability Level 3+ data centre. The 10-year data centre services contract will ensure the airline has a more resilient IT infrastructure to support its business.

By utilising the new IBM Data Centre in Auckland in addition to another commercially operated data centre, Air New Zealand will be able to replicate its entire IT environment across two modern data centres. IBM’s new world class data centre provides a highly reliable and secure facility which delivers 99.982% availability.

“IBM values our long term relationship with Air New Zealand and we are delighted to welcome their business to our new data centre. We look forward to providing advanced technology solutions and services to help Air New Zealand continue to compete domestically and on international routes,” says Jennifer Moxon, Managing Director, IBM New Zealand.

“This new agreement makes Air New Zealand the first company in the country to have its IT infrastructure across two Tier-3 facilities,” says Air New Zealand CFO Robert McDonald.

“Air New Zealand’s technology landscape has seen a significant shift over the past couple of years, as we continue to design and implement new innovative solutions across our business. Our move to Tier-3 facilities means we now have one of the most sophisticated and reliable IT infrastructures to support our business needs.”

IBM New Zealand officially opened its new data centre, a 5,200m² scalable facility incorporating smart building technology and energy efficiency standards, in May 2011. Migration of Air New Zealand’s IT systems to IBM’s new data centre is planned for completion by March 2012.