EDS lands $715 million outsourcing pact

EDS said Monday that it will manage Bristol-Myers Squibb's IT infrastructure in a deal valued at $715 million over seven years.

According to EDS it will manage Squibb's operations data at the pharmaceutical company's data centers around the world. EDS will also take over help desk support and manage Squibb's sales, scientific, SAP and employee environments.

EMC, Microsoft, Oracle and SAP are riding shotgun with EDS to provide products and services.

Last week, Squibb announced plans to lay off 10 percent of its workforce to save about $1.5 billion by 2010. Squibb also will cut its manufacturing facilities by 50 percent by the end of 2010 and pare its brands. The EDS deal appears to be part of Squibb's overall effort to boost productivity.