Isabela, Puerto Rico (March 18, 2010) - AXON Puerto Rico, Inc. (APR), a joint venture between Pratt & Whitney and HCL AXON, today inaugurated its SAP® Services Center in Isabela and announced plans to grow to 300 employees. The Governor of Puerto Rico, Luis Fortuño, made the announcement with executives from both global companies.
APR provides SAP® application management, solutions implementation and near-shore delivery and consulting services for projects in the Americas. It serves various business segments, including: defense, government, export markets and private enterprise. Due to the Center's bilingual capabilities, it also serves the Latin America market. HCL AXON, the biggest global provider of SAP® solutions services, is a division of HCL Technologies, a Business Transformation consultancy that delivers significant value to large, complex organizations through support of SAP® technologies. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies company (NYSE:UTX).
The new 33,444-square-foot Services Center is located on the property of the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company (PRIDCO) at the Mora Guerrero Industrial Park in Isabela.
"Puerto Rico has unique characteristics that attract this type of businesses from the aerospace sector. First, being Puerto Rico a US territory, we are subject to the same federal regulations. We are also in a strategic position and offer economic and tax incentives that are very attractive to this type of business," said Hon. Luis Fortuño, Governor of Puerto Rico.
"Puerto Rico enjoys a uniquely attractive position to promote the start-up of new companies in the aerospace sector. Since the end of 2008, the aerospace industry reflects an investment of $18 Million and the creation of 500 direct jobs in Puerto Rico. Our commitment at PRIDCO is to continue to increase the presence of the aerospace sector in the Island, in order to diversify our industrial base and create highly technical and well compensated jobs," said Javier Vázquez -Morales, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company (PRIDCO).
"Pratt & Whitney is highly committed to Puerto Rico. Our joint venture Infotech Aerospace Services, Inc. currently has 660 employees and AXON Puerto Rico already surpassed the 100-job mark. After the goal of 300 high-technology jobs is reached at AXON Puerto Rico, there will be almost 1,000 employees in the Isabela operations. This makes us very proud," said Rita Peralta, AXON Puerto Rico President.
"We greatly value our partnership with Pratt & Whitney and look forward to a highly successful development of the vision we have created together and which is now a reality at AXON Puerto Rico. This SAP services center is positioned to deliver exactly what the market is looking for," said Steve Cardell, CEO of HCL AXON.
Chris Beiswenger, Executive Vice President of HCL AXON Americasstated "AXON Puerto Rico is a critical element in serving our Aerospace & Defense customers. The service our customers receive from AXON Puerto Rico is outstanding and the capabilities offered give us a unique position in the marketplace. Our partnership with Pratt & Whitney and our commitment to grow jobs in Puerto Rico are extremely strong."
About HCL AXON
HCL AXON (www.hcl-AXON.com), a division of HCL Technologies, is a business transformation consultancy that delivers significant value to large, complex organizations through the innovative implementation and support of SAP technologies. HCL AXON has over 4,700 of the industry's most experienced professionals specializing in the delivery of sustained business improvement through technology-enabled transformation programs. HCL AXON's consultants bring in-depth industry expertise alongside best practice functional knowledge to address the strategic, operational, information management and organizational challenges faced by organizations today. HCL AXON is renowned for its global ability to help clients define more ambitious strategies, build more effective organizations and shape more successful futures.About HCL Technologies
HCL Technologies is a leading global IT services company, working with clients in the areas that impact and redefine the core of their businesses. Since its inception into the global landscape after its IPO in 1999, HCL focuses on ‘transformational outsourcing', underlined by innovation and value creation, and offers integrated portfolio of services including software-led IT solutions, remote infrastructure management, engineering and R&D services and BPO. HCL leverages its extensive global offshore infrastructure and network of offices in 26 countries to provide holistic, multi-service delivery in key industry verticals including Financial Services, Manufacturing, Consumer Services, Public Services and Healthcare. HCL takes pride in its philosophy of ‘Employee First' which empowers our 55,688 transformers to create a real value for the customers. HCL Technologies, along with its subsidiaries, had consolidated revenues of US$ 2.5 billion (Rs. 11,833 crores), as on 31st December 2009 (on LTM basis). For more information, please visit www.hcltech.com.SAP is a trademark of SAP AG.
