Many large companies keep their IT department jealously close, fearing that giving up control leads to chaos. One of Europe’s fastest-growing manufacturing groups did a U-turn a few years ago, sending almost its entire IT team away and handing the keys over to… another company. How has this helped focus on core activities and get rid of tedious routine?
In reality, there is no drama here, only cold and calculated business logic. This is the story of how HANZA, which also offers factories as outsourcing, just as they themselves take in IT services from the outside, produces everything from medical devices to heavy machinery for world-famous brands, letting OIXIO IT manage the entire IT infrastructure. As HANZA’s IT manager herself has said, no company’s core business is maintaining its computer workstations and servers and managing the network and IT.
Client Profile: HANZA
Industry: Manufacturing (Contract Manufacturing and Supply Chain Advisory)
Region: Global (Factories: Sweden, Finland, Germany, Baltics, Central Europe, China)
Employees / Locations: ~3,500 employees (adding 1,500) / 25 factories in 7 countries
Workstations / Servers: 3,000+ workstations, 500+ servers
Website: www.hanza.com
Problem description: when growing pains start to interfere
HANZA is not a regular factory operator but a global manufacturing group with a 2025 turnover reaching over 600 million euros. Their growth strategy is quite aggressive – expanding both by acquiring other factories, and building new ones.
From this, however, a classic “Tower of Babel” problem emerged. Every acquired factory came with its own baggage: ancient servers ran in one, exotic software was used in another, and in the next, there was an IT guy who spoke only the local dialect. The result was a motley and complex-to-manage IT infrastructure.
The company faced a choice: either start recruiting an IT army everywhere, which requires immense management resources and fixed costs, or find a partner who could successfully manage this digital landscape and do it centrally, from one place.
The situation was particularly critical in electronics manufacturing clusters, where an IT system failure means the production line stops practically to the second – and that is the most expensive possible silence in the industry.
Solution analysis: a “tailor-made product” without your own tailor
The solution lay in the philosophy that HANZA itself sells to its clients: outsourcing. If HANZA manufactures devices and products for, for example, 3M or Siemens under subcontracting, why should they “produce” their own IT?
OIXIO IT (previously through BRS Networks Baltics, which was merged into OIXIO in 2024) took over HANZA’s entire IT Operations side. This does not merely mean the service works on the principle of “call us if the mouse doesn’t work.” It also means full responsibility for the company’s entire digital bloodstream:
- Central brain, local hands: OIXIO IT manages processes from Estonia but uses a trusted partner network in Poland, Germany, and elsewhere for on-site works that need to be done physically (cabling, physical device replacement).
- Standardization as a foundation: Instead of managing tens of different systems, the entire infrastructure is connected into a unified, manageable standard. Everything that could be harmonized (servers, workstations, network devices) was harmonized. This is more beneficial and simpler for both the service provider and the company itself.
- Feeling like “own people”: This means that the OIXIO team is not “them,” but “us” for the company itself. Communication takes place directly between specialists, without bureaucratic barriers, using shared tools.
Measuring results: numbers don’t lie
The results are massive and speak for themselves. Today, there is a true technological empire under OIXIO IT’s management.
- Infrastructure: Over 500 servers, 800 network devices, and 3,000 computer workstations.
- Workload: Over 1,500 work tasks are completed every month, plus extensive automation running in the background that keeps systems up without human intervention.
- Security and Trust: In cooperation, the ISO 27001 information security certification was achieved. This is not just paper on the wall, but a critical requirement from HANZA’s own clients (e.g., medical and defense industries) who demand top-tier data protection from a partner.
- Scalability: When HANZA recently bought a new factory, 1,500 employees were added instantly, bringing the total to over 5000. Thanks to established processes, even such giants can be smoothly integrated into the existing IT system.
Lessons learned and recommendations: don’t be afraid to let go of control
The biggest lesson of this cooperation is simple, but still a bit frightening for many Estonian entrepreneurs: the fear of losing control is the biggest brake.
- IT is no longer just “computer guy” work: Modern manufacturing requires cybersecurity experts, network architects, and cloud technology specialists in addition. It is impossible for one company to keep all these skilled people on the payroll full-time.
- Standardization is the key to growth: If you plan to expand or buy other companies, a unified IT foundation is essential. Without it, the IT system will fall apart sooner or later.
- Trust Professionals: HANZA’s success shows that full IT outsourcing ensures better quality and lets management focus on what actually brings money in – manufacturing and sales.
Client’s own assessment
HANZA’s management and IT Director have clearly expressed satisfaction with the chosen path. For them, OIXIO IT is like “our guys” with whom things can be discussed openly and amicably, not chasing line items in every rigid contract clause.
“Our core business is not keeping IT running. Our own business principle is to offer outsourcing, and we live by it ourselves. Cooperation with OIXIO gives us the confidence that our factories are working and data is protected, regardless of which corner of Europe we operate in.”
Marie Leanderson, IT Director, HANZA
Do you feel that your company’s IT is becoming too heavy a burden, or do you wish to secure your digital foundation? Contact OIXIO IT experts, and let’s see how we can contribute to your business growth.
