Capgemini opens SMAC digital innovation lab in Melbourne

Capgemini has launched their SMAC (Social Mobile, Analytics and Cloud) lab in Melbourne, Australia.

Victoria Premier Denis Napthine officially opened the Melbourne Global Delivery Centre and SMAC lab which will be the new home to Capgemini’s Victorian operation, in Melbourne’s central business district.

Capgemini already has a strong existing presence in Australia with over 2,000 employees servicing Australian clients, and approximately 500 employees in Victoria. This multi-million dollar investment and new lab will create an additional 75 jobs and re-enforces Capgemini’s commitment to Melbourne’s local ICT market.
With over 89% of companies utilising at least one of the major technology tools which contribute to digital transformation, enabled by social, mobility, analytics and cloud, the SMAC Lab will play a pivotal role in offering support to businesses with varying degrees of digital maturity, tailored for individual needs and goals.
Deepak Nangia, CEO for Capgemini Australia and New Zealand added: “Melbourne has one of the largest research and development clusters in the southern hemisphere and spends more than any other Australian city. Simply put, Melbourne is a prime place for investment - it has the ICT skills, infrastructure and capabilities we needed to open our SMAC lab. Today’s announcement reinforces our ongoing commitment to the local ICT market and building tomorrow’s talent."

In addition, SAP today opened a new Innovation Centre and a Mission Control Centre in Melbourne. Headquartered in Germany, SAP is the world leader in enterprise software and software-related services with annual revenue of around $24 billion.

The Centre will focus on helping organisations move to cloud deployment models, representing an A$60 million investment in infrastructure and staff over five years, including a new mission control centre. The Melbourne Mission Control Centre will be one of five in SAP’S global network and will provide 24 hour critical support for more than 85 Australian and 44 international organisations.

IBM Australia has also announced it will invest up to $100 million in Melbourne’s cloud infrastructure with the launch of a new data centre which will use state-of-the-art SoftLayer cloud computing technology at Deer Park in Melbourne.

SoftLayer, an IBM Company, operates a global cloud infrastructure platform built for internet scale. With 100,000 devices under management and a global footprint of network points of presence, SoftLayer’s customers range from web start-ups to global enterprises.

Geoffrey Conaghan, the Agent General for Melbourne in the UK, commented: “Businesses from across the world are flocking to Melbourne as their hub for Asia-Pacific activity, with the UK and Europe leading the pack. These three investments are a vote of confidence in Melbourne as a leading IT centre and further illustrate why Melbourne is the world’s most liveable city to live, work and invest in.”

These three announcements are the latest in a string of recent technology investments in the state of Victoria since the beginning of 2014. These include Mimecast, a UK cloud technology firm, India’s Dexler, Cyient and Servion Global Solutions and US companies Hightail, TinTri and Equinix all announcing major new multi-million dollar ICT operations in Victoria.

Since November 2010, the Victorian Coalition Government has helped facilitate over $1 billion in new technology-related investment creating 4,700 jobs. In June this year, the Victorian Government launched the ICT Workforce Development Plan, a $3 million suite of initiatives to build a stronger Victorian ICT workforce.