Aker Solutions moves to SAP’s cloud in digitalization push

Norwegian oil services company Aker Solutions has accelerated its digitalization efforts by moving its internal SAP applications to SAP’s cloud.

Aker Solutions said on Monday that cloud-based systems were typically cheaper to run than physical systems as they require less expenditure on computer hardware, monitoring and software licenses.

The company added that the move, aiming to improve operations and drive efficiency, would save it about 20 percent on software licensing costs alone.

Aker Solutions’ COO, Dean Watson, said: “We’re an early mover on this as we see it as yet another opportunity to use digitalization to transform our own internal processes. It’s also part of our broader strategy to harness the power of data to create greater value for our customers.”

SAP’s Nordics and Baltics managing director, Martin Schirmer, said: “This will enable Aker Solutions to harvest the financial and operational benefits of running business critical systems in the cloud.”

Aker Solutions has used SAP’s suite of business applications for accounting, sales, inventory, and payroll since 2004. Cognizant has provided the IT services.

Aker Solutions, Cognizant, and SAP Digital Business Services have already started transferring the data from physical servers to the cloud-based platform. The transfer is expected to be complete in the fourth quarter.

The company has also decided to run SAP SuccessFactors – a cloud-based suite of human resources applications, which facilitates employee engagement and career development, including from mobile devices.