2007

Paris, Dec. 6, 2007

 

 

Airline catering company Gate Gourmet signed a 3-year, multimillion euro contract with Orange Business Services for a global, homogenous IP VPN with extended service and fault management. The contract includes end-to-end service level agreements to support Gate Gourmet’s worldwide ERP rollout based on SAP.

 

Orange Business Services’ high performance infrastructure connects approximately 100 of Gate Gourmet’s corporate and kitchen sites around the world. The infrastructure also supports the company’s corporate applications, including its critical ERP system. Thanks to the global network, Gate Gourmet has seen an optimization of its business processes and procedures, as well as supply chains. Gate Gourmet benefits from daily cost control and is able to adhere to any compliance request, resulting in cost leadership and competitiveness.

 

Leveraging Orange Business Services’ global network, Gate Gourmet’s infrastructure is future-proof and ready to expand as its business grows. Also, the network can easily integrate voice and video to further drive down IT spending.

 

“Through this agreement, Gate Gourmet can simultaneously enhance its productivity and benefit from immediate cost savings, a winning combination,” said Diana Leonard, senior vice president of the Americas at Orange Business Services. “Orange Business Services will help Gate Gourmet optimize its current communications infrastructure, benefit from global, end-to-end service level agreements and explore future convergence solutions.”

 

Founded in 1992, Gate Gourmet is the world’s largest independent airline catering and logistics company. With approximately 20,000 employees globally, Gate Gourmet serves its customers from 93 kitchens, in 25 countries, and provides more than 200 million meals annually.

 

Orange is the key brand of France Telecom, one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators. 

 

France Telecom serves more than 163 million customers in five continents (220 countries or territories) as of June 30, 2007, of which two thirds are Orange customers. The Group had consolidated sales of 51.7 billion euros in 2006 (25.9 billion euros for the 1st semester of 2007).

 

Launched in June 2005, France Telecom’s NExT program (New Experience in Telecommunications) will enable the Group to pursue its transformation as an integrated operator and make France Telecom the benchmark for new telecommunications services in Europe. In 2006, Orange became the Group's single brand for Internet, television and mobile services in the majority of countries where the company operates, and Orange Business Services the banner for services offered to businesses worldwide. France Telecom is the number three mobile operator and the number one provider of broadband internet services in Europe and one of the world leaders in providing telecommunication services to multinational companies.

 

France Telecom (NYSE:FTE) is listed on Euronext Paris and on the New York Stock Exchange.