Vertiv, a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, has launched its African headquarters and state-of-the-art Customer Experience Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, today.
According to Wojtek Piorko, Vertiv Africa’s newly appointed managing director, the formal opening of the South African premises is an important aspect of Vertiv’s ‘Africa for Africa’ program and demonstrates the company’s engagement in the region.
“Vertiv is expanding our local network of authorized partners and service providers while maintaining a strong business focus on Africa.” “Our ‘Africa for Africa’ project also emphasizes the importance of meeting the needs of our local clients, for which the opening of the African head office and local Customer Experience Centre is critical,” Piorko continues.
The Johannesburg Customer Experience Centre allows clients to interact with Vertiv’s varied portfolio of critical infrastructure technologies for applications ranging from the network’s edge to the cloud.
In addition to the products displayed at the centre, Vertiv offers the experience of its large-scale modular data centres, power and thermal management solutions through virtual reality (VR) to African customers.
Piorko clarifies: “Using our VR offering, the Vertiv Virtual Showroom, clients can embark on a unique virtual trip to experience Vertiv’s capabilities, giving both novices and seasoned experts of Vertiv products a way to fully understand the entire layout of the critical digital infrastructure.”
Users wear a headset and use hand controllers to navigate the VR environment, interact with equipment, and watch animations that demonstrate a product’s value and key features. They can observe the spatial placement of Vertiv’s rack and row solutions, as though they were actually on site. They are also able to customise a Vertiv™ VR rack by placing servers, power, thermal, and storage devices into the unit.
“This experience gives decision-makers a deeper understanding of the entire infrastructure at work,” Piorko adds. “In addition, our new Customer Experience Centre will provide presales, sales, and product training, as well as full-service certification courses for Vertiv’s authorised service partner network.”
Piorko was joined recently by a number of senior Vertiv leaders for the African head office roof wetting celebration, including Karsten Winther, president of the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region; Peter Lambrecht, VP of sales for EMEA; Vicente Chiralt, VP of marketing for EMEA; Viktor Petik, VP and global leader for Vertiv’s Integrated Modular Solutions business ; Kjell Lovqvist, VP for DC power and outdoor enclosures for EMEA; Andrea Ferro, VP for Technology Application and Market Development; and Juraj Sekera, transformation director EMEA.
