Global eye-care specialist Bausch & Lomb (B&L) is rapidly consolidating its Asian information technology (IT) resources under one platform based in Hong Kong.
The move is part of a wider initiative by the New York-based company to trim overall IT expenses worldwide and generate annual cost savings of about US$30 million by 2005.
David Lam Tak-cheong, vice-president for information management and technology in Asia, said consolidation efforts that involved the company's 11 Asian markets have moved ahead of schedule, resulting in IT expenses being reduced to 1.8 per cent of total regional sales.
'What we've achieved so far is the lowest in our industry, beating even competitors like Johnson & Johnson,' he said.
That was also the lowest among B&L's three main geographical operations, comprising the Americas, Asia, and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. At present, the company's total IT expenses make up about 5 per cent of annual sales worldwide.
Mr Lam expected Asia's overall IT expenses against total revenues to further decrease after consolidating its mainland IT operations late last year, and including its Japan operations by the end of this year and India next year under B&L's Asian Computing Centre in Hong Kong.
The company's total first-half sales this year reached US$872.6 million, up US$68.4 million or 9 per cent over sales in the same period last year. Asia has emerged recently as B&L's fastest-growing regional operation, with increasing markets inside the mainland and India for its eye care products.
