Azlan to shut Birmingham office

Tech Data-owned distributor begins consultation with staff over planned move to consolidate HP team in Basingstoke

Azlan is planning to close its Birmingham office as it looks to unite its HP enterprise business under one roof, CRN has learned.

According to sources, the Tech Data-owned distributor has begun consultation with the 50 or so staff based at its Birmingham location, which it inherited through its acquisition of SDG.

Tech Data would not comment on the details but confirmed it is proposing to bring its HP server, storage, software and server businesses into a "single unified" team at its HQ in Basingstoke.

The move comes two months after Tech Data UK marketing director Andy Dow took the reins of Azlan's HP business following the departure of predecessor Lee Driscoll.

Tech Data's acquisition of SDG last year left it with two large HP enterprise teams. While its Basingstoke hub was the market leader for HP Networking, the Birmingham office - which was the old ETC business - had a server/storage bent. Sources had pointed to some tension between the two locations, post merger.

"The proposal to bring our HP teams and their collective skills together will create what we believe to be the single biggest and most expert HP Enterprise team in distribution," said Dow in a statement sent to CRN.

"The proposal means that we will have all our HP specialists in one place, ready to deliver the widest spectrum of capabilities to HP partners on all of HP's Converged Infrastructure technologies."

Azlan said it was unable to comment on the consultation process but it is likely at least some of the roles under threat will be preserved, especially those that lend themselves to flexible working.