MANUFACTURING
In the world of high-volume textile manufacturing , there are three factors that corporate leaders must ensure are operating in perfect equilibrium : people , processes and technology . Arindam Sinha , the Chief Information Officer at Epic Group , knows just how crucial it is to achieve a balance in the triad , which is why he has recently overhauled the multinational garment manufacturer ’ s entire IT infrastructure .
Epic Group was established in 1971 in Hong Kong , where it cemented itself as a major manufacturer of silk garments for the American market . In 1990 , the company set up its own manufacturing plant and has since become a key global player in the industry , producing apparel for internationally-renowned brands like Wal-Mart , JC Penney , VF , Levis and Nordstrom . Today , Epic employs over 20,000 people in both its manufacturing facilities in Bangladesh and Vietnam and its corporate hub in Hong Kong .
One year ago , in the face of massive expansion , Sinha was brought in to be the group ’ s first-ever CIO — and a programme for rapid modernisation was set in motion .
“ Technology is vital for this organisation because this organisation is growing at an enormous pace and what can help support this is a stable and strong IT infrastructure ,” Sinha says .
His vision has helped to provide Epic Group with a converged infrastructure to enable to virtualisation of servers , creating a hybrid environment of installed and cloud computing . With an organisation of Epic ’ s scope and scale , it is vital that so-called ‘ big data ’ is analysed using effective intelligence solutions and that collaboration tools are available at all levels .
Upon Sinha ’ s arrival , the company ’ s first act was to create a separate governance structure for IT , of which the top tier is an IT Steering Committee made up of the Board of Directors . The next step was to
www . epichk . com 201