Case Study: AkzoNobel accelerates global customer service and app releases with Microsoft Azure

Global paint firm transforms customer service worldwide with Microsoft cloud technologies

AkzoNobel, a global manufacturer of paints and coatings, faced challenges with its outdated MIXIT software. Delivering updates and new color formulas to its 60,000 worldwide customers was a slow, burdensome process that took up to a year for a full upgrade, hindering their ability to quickly innovate. The company needed to speed up its time-to-market and provide better data access to its customers and field staff.

Microsoft, with partners Caesar Group and DutchWorkz, implemented a cloud-based solution using Microsoft Azure and development tools like Visual Studio Application Insights. Hosting MIXIT on Azure accelerated deployment and enabled proactive application monitoring. This new agile development process slashed the time to release new color technology from four months to just three weeks, significantly improving customer service and allowing field staff to focus on sales instead of technical support.

AkzoNobel

Henri Bijsterbosch

Global Manager Digital Color for Vehicle Refinishes Marketing