Unisys has announced an application that enables users of the ServiceNow platform to automate provisioning of IT resources on Azure.
The tech company has also introduced logistics management and facilities management applications for the ServiceNow platform.
Drawing on the ServiceNow service catalogue and workflow capabilities, these Edge offerings give digital businesses access to personalised, on-demand, “always on” business and IT services to support their workers, partners and clients. Unisys says it will continue adding service management applications to the Edge suite.
The Unisys provisioning application for Azure enables users, through the ServiceNow interface, to quickly provision and decommission virtual machines, storage, networking and other IT resources as services on Azure.
By significantly reducing the need for manual intervention, this automation capability enables organisations using Azure to streamline delivery of digital services and reduce associated costs.
"ServiceNow and Azure are two of the most powerful platforms for delivery of cloud-based services on the market today," says Paul Gleeson, global vice president, Edge Services, Unisys.
"By harnessing the two technologies and complementing them with Unisys-managed services, we can enable clients to deliver an improved service management experience to their users at an affordable cost."
The Unisys logistics management application uses the process-management capabilities of the ServiceNow platform to automate the product shipment lifecycle, from inventory management through ordering, delivery tracking and financial management.
This automated capability enables organisations to manage stock more efficiently and get products to customers more quickly.
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The Unisys facilities management application for ServiceNow enables automated orchestration and coordination of response to events – such as snowstorms or electrical outages – that can affect building operations.
Based on specific protocols, the application identifies required tasks for a given situation, identifies people responsible for each task and measures the degree of successful completion for each task.
The application provides management with a valuable means not only to coordinate response to critical events, but also to evaluate and refine response processes on an ongoing basis.
Auckland University has been using ServiceNow for the past two-and-a-half years.
"The key is that it is capable of expanding and increasing its value to us as we need it,” says spokesperson Beth Coleman.
"We get great value from the tool. We use it to assist staff while students are serviced through a different portal."
Coleman says there are more than 1,500 articles available for reference, and those who need it can self-service on technical matters.
"The reporting side is a significant benefit for how we do our key performance indicators."
Previously, the university was using older tools such as Remedy but now, ServiceNow has enabled mobility and the provision of a service catalogue.
Please note: This article has been updated.