Leading independent SAP consultancy Absoft has been awarded a £1million contract to deliver a major business software solution for Northumbria University.
Absoft will extend the Newcastle upon Tyne-based university’s use of SAP, building on its existing use of the SAP Finance module, which will transfer to Absoft’s hosting facilities, before new SAP Purchasing, and HR and Payroll software modules are implemented.
The project, scheduled to start in July 2012 and expected to take around a year to complete, will see Absoft host the University’s entire SAP system, at its data centres in Aberdeen and Dundee, helping reduce the institution’s carbon footprint by introducing energy efficiencies.
Geoff Foster, head of HR Projects and Systems at Northumbria University, said: “We believe Absoft, which has extensive knowledge of the higher education sector and experience in delivering systems for fellow UK universities, will help us make the most of our investment in SAP software through this project.
“By integrating and automating our key back office processes, we will make significant efficiency savings, helping the University to respond positively to the pressures on funding which the higher education sector continues to face.”
The contract follows the Aberdeen-headquartered business’s success in securing new deals with Staffordshire County Council, Northern Rail and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), and marks further growth in a key sector.
Ian Mechie, managing director of Absoft, said: “We are pleased to see another university recognising the benefits that will come from moving away from separate back office systems to SAP’s fully integrated enterprise resource planning capabilities.”
Absoft recorded sustained growth throughout 2011, as it marked its 20th anniversary – boosting turnover and its pool of expert staff by 25%. Turnover at the software specialist, generated by work in higher education, rose by 29% in the last financial year from £1.4million to £1.8million.
