IBM has announced that Tupperware Australia has upgraded to IBM POWER7 technology in time for this year's hectic Christmas sales rush.

The new systems support Tupperware's web ordering system for more than 6,000 of its sales force, as well as its browser-based TupperNet system for 32 Australian and New Zealand distributors. The TupperNet system handles key business applications such as order processing, stock control, accounts and reporting. Crucially, it will accommodate the company's frenetic peak sales periods leading up to Christmas and Mother's Day, as well as anticipated future business growth.

With the rapid increase in business and sales force using the web ordering system to place orders, Tupperware realized it required more processing power and capacity to underpin its expansion. The increased demand on its web-based business applications also required a robust infrastructure capable of providing high levels of availability and performance.

With the help of IBM technology solution provider Advent One, Tupperware chose two IBM Power 750 servers, including one for disaster recovery, and six IBM System x3550 servers to handle the increased workload and capacity needs of its two web-based business applications. The upgrade of its WebSphere Application Server, which supports both web-based ordering systems, as well as the IBM i operating system to version 6.1, enabled its applications to run more efficiently and transactions to be processed faster. In addition, the company implemented IBM iCluster High Availability software to facilitate a smooth, rapid transition from the previous system to the new environment.

In the past three years, the number of Tupperware's sales force in Australia and New Zealand using the online ordering application has jumped from 1,850 to over 6,000.  As a result, retail transactions on the company's web ordering system increased 40 percent to 75 percent, which placed increased workload pressure on Tupperware's infrastructure.  More than 850,000 orders have been processed through the web ordering system alone so far this year.

With the new POWER7 systems, Tupperware can process twice the number of web orders each day and reliably handle more of its sales force, providing increased functionality without any degradation in performance. The company can offer around-the-clock service across three time zones to customers in Australia and New Zealand with confidence, even during the busiest sales periods.

Con Sardellis, IT Operations Manager for Tupperware, said he appreciated the quick, easy migration from the existing system to the new IBM POWER7 systems. "It was all completed in a couple of hours with barely any disruption to our operations," he said. "This business cannot afford any significant outage.  With the support of IBM and Advent One, the migration to the Power 750 was painless."

Gary Zuccala, Client Consultant, Advent One, said, "Performance is better, processing and response times are faster. Back-up times have halved so uptime has significantly improved. We have complete confidence that the new technology meets and surpasses Tupperware's expectations and builds on our close, longstanding relationship."

Con Sardellis said, "For more than 50 years Tupperware has been synonymous with quality products of the highest standard. When it came to selecting future-proofed, business-critical technology for our business, IBM was a perfect fit."

"IBM is delighted that Tupperware is taking advantage of IBM's three-year US $3 billion investment in POWER7 systems," said Raj Thakur, Business Unit Executive, Systems & Technology Group, IBM Australia and New Zealand.  "POWER7 systems are designed with innovative workload-optimizing technologies to not only better manage traditional applications, but also the demands of emerging applications."