The NSOC opening marks an important stage in Getronics continuing drive for innovation in service delivery to its clients around the world.

The NSOC will offer two fully integrated services to Getronics clients across the Company's worldwide operations: 7x24 network monitoring and continuous security scanning and intervention. The former ensures the networks performance and the latter its integrity, protecting business from an increasingly sophisticated barrage of attack.

Klaas Wagenaar, Getronics CEO speaking at the ceremony, explained, "Although this impressive centre is new, the services are a natural continuation of Getronics' core skills as a leading ICT service provider. By concentrating resources in this way, we are able to focus investment to ensure that our clients have access to an exceptional level of expertise and to technical resources which would otherwise be beyond their reach."

The opening of the NSOC follows on from Getronics 2004 investments in Global Service Centres in both Mexico and Budapest. Jean-Paul Adans, Getronics CIO comments, "The nature of ICT service has changed irrevocably in recent years. Our clients increasingly expect the benefits of proactive and preventative remote services - rather than problem-solving, they want us to stop them happening in the first place, and the NSOC is a great resource for our clients in this sense."

As well as demanding gains in availability and performance, businesses today are also continually seeking benefits in terms of cost-effectiveness, and this too is a key driver in the evolution of the Getronics remote service delivery model.

In addition to the significant technical investment, the centre will be staffed by ten highly-skilled network security specialists. The centre opening also marks the beginning of a new strategic business alliance between Getronics and Managed Security Service specialists Counterpane.

The centre works closely with Counterpane whose sophisticated security monitoring tools are able to log as many as 15 million network connections in a single 24 hour period. Paul Stick, Counterpane CEO is excited to be working closely with Getronics in this venture; "Service innovation increasingly depends on complementary skills coming together. By combining the managed security and monitoring technologies of Counterpane with the global reach and vision of Getronics, we create an offer which is absolutely pertinent to networked businesses today."

Adjacent to the NSOC, Getronics has also opened an Executive Briefing Centre, in which its clients and partners can meet to examine the ongoing evolution of service, ensuring that its strategy remains focused and responsive to its clients' continuously evolving needs.