Government’s science minister backs Aston University-led neuromorphic computing research

The UK Multidisciplinary Centre for Neuromorphic Computing is headed by the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies (AIPT).

The consortium of seven universities and 22 non-academic partners was officially launched at the House of Lords

“Neuromorphic computing, inspired by the brain's really remarkable energy efficiency, could fundamentally transform how AI operate” said Lord Patrick Vallance.

A new research centre led by Aston University could be key to tackling the huge consumption of energy by data centres in the UK.

The UK Multidisciplinary Centre for Neuromorphic Computing is headed by the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies (AIPT) and was officially launched at the House of Lords on 21 October.

Neuromorphic computing seeks to replicate how 

the brain functions and its structure and apply that knowledge to develop future computing systems. Currently scientists lack a deep, system-level understanding of how the human organ computes at cellular and network scales.

The researchers within the consortium of seven universities, alongside 22 non-academic partners, will aim to tackle that challenge directly, blending stem-cell-derived human neuron experiments with advanced computational models, development of new materials, low-power algorithms and novel photonic - or light-based - hardware.

As well as speakers from politics and science, a message from the Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear, Lord Patrick Vallance was delivered to the guests at the Houses of Parliament reception. Speaking via video he said that he believed the initiative could be key to tackling the issue of massive energy use by data centres. Current government figures show that they use about 2.5% of the UK's electricity, a figure projected to rise significantly with the further advances in AI.

Lord Vallance said: “Data centres demand enormous energy and water resources and left unchecked. Without thinking about how we can manage this and innovate we would threaten clean energy and net zero ambitions.

He added: “Future computing paradigms offer a potential path to not only more ways of thinking about how to compute but also overcoming some of the traditional limitations of traditional computing, particularly in scenarios where energy efficiency or new capabilities are important. It seems to me the centre embodies that ambition; neuromorphic computing, inspired by the brain's really remarkable energy efficiency, could fundamentally transform how AI operates.”

The centre received £5.6 million funding over four years from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. However, its director, Professor Sergei Turitsyn of AIPT told launch guests that it is his ambition for the centre to be financially sustainable beyond its initial EPSRC funding period. He also stated that he believes that the centre will be instrumental in putting the UK at the forefront of the neuromorphic computing research.

He said: “The ultimate goal is to build a new UK brand in neuromorphic computing, working closely with the recently funded UK network project NeuMat and the Innovation and Knowledge Centre Neuroware.

“Some people ask ‘what exactly is neuromorphic computing? Arguably, there no universal answer, and this is exactly the point about our centre. Some people tell you it is nature-or brain-inspired, others stress non digital features and some focus on energy saving or analogue signal processing.

"That's why we need researchers from different disciplines to work together and that is why this group of universities and industrial partners will start this broad approach, with neuroscientists, working with experts in material science, algorithms, electronics and photonics.”

The centre will be led by the AIPT and will include world-leading researchers from Aston University, the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, the University of Southampton, Queen Mary University of London, Loughborough University and the University of Strathclyde. The centre will be supported by a broad network of industry partners to enhance the centre’s impact on society. These include Microsoft Research, Thales, BT, QinetiQ, Nokia Bell Labs, Hewlett Packard Labs, Leonardo, Northrop Grumman and a number of small to medium enterprises.

Water use in data centres: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/688cb407dc6688ed50878367/Water_use_in_data_centre_and_AI_report.pdf

https://www.aston.ac.uk/research/eps/aipt

Celebrating Ada Lovelace Day – Honouring the World’s First Computer Programmer

Every 14th October, Ada Lovelace Day shines a light on the often-overlooked achievements of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). 

Named in honour of Ada Lovelace, the visionary mathematician widely regarded as the world’s first computer programmer, this day is an inspiring reminder of how far we’ve come and how much further we can go when equality and curiosity meet innovation.

Who Was Ada Lovelace?

Born Augusta Ada Byron in 1815, Ada Lovelace was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron and mathematician Annabella Milbanke. 

While her father’s fame stemmed from poetry, it was her mother’s passion for mathematics that truly shaped Ada’s destiny.

As a young woman, Ada developed a fascination with machines and mathematics, which led to her collaboration with Charles Babbage on his design for the Analytical Engine, an early mechanical general-purpose computer. In her notes on Babbage’s machine, Ada described how it could be programmed to perform complex calculations, and even generate music and art if given the right data.

These insights, written in the 1840s, predated the first working computers by over a century. Her vision was so far ahead of its time that she’s now celebrated as a pioneer of computing and the first to truly grasp the potential of software.

What Is Ada Lovelace Day?

Founded in 2009 by Suw Charman-Anderson, Ada Lovelace Day is celebrated on the second Tuesday of October each year. It’s a global event that highlights the achievements of women in STEM and aims to encourage more young women and girls to pursue careers in these fields.

The day is marked with talks, workshops, educational programmes, and online celebrations that showcase the vital role women play in advancing science and technology. From physicists and programmers to engineers and innovators, Ada Lovelace Day is about giving recognition and visibility to women who are shaping our future.

Why Ada Lovelace Day Matters

Despite progress in gender equality, women remain underrepresented in STEM industries. Ada Lovelace Day helps to challenge stereotypes, promote role models, and inspire the next generation to dream big. It reminds us that innovation thrives on diversity—and that women have always been part of the story, even when history forgot to write them in.

How You Can Celebrate

Learn About Ada Lovelace – Read about her life, her groundbreaking ideas, and how they continue to influence computing today.

Support Women in STEM – Share stories of female scientists, engineers, and technologists who inspire you.

Attend Events – Look out for Ada Lovelace Day Live events, online talks, and workshops celebrating women in STEM.

Encourage the Next Generation – Support girls’ STEM education initiatives, or simply inspire curiosity through conversation and example.

A Legacy of Imagination and Intelligence

Ada once described her approach to mathematics as “poetical science”, a beautiful blend of logic and creativity. It’s a phrase that perfectly captures why her story still resonates today. She saw machines not as cold mechanisms, but as tools for imagination and human potential.

On Ada Lovelace Day, we celebrate her genius and the countless women who’ve followed in her footsteps, proving that innovation knows no gender, only passion, vision, and perseverance.

TAAP announces Windows 8 versions of tablet applications

TAAP – the field service software application specialist – plans to offer its technology on tablets running the Windows 8 operating system, when it is released in Autumn next year, and is currently developing on the test platform.

This is in addition to its current offering which encompasses applications for tablets such as the Apple iPad, Motion CL900 and a proliferation of mobile PDAs. TAAP currently supplies clients within the utilities and construction sector with applications which use Microsoft Silverlight technology and operate on the Windows Phone 7 operating system and the Motion CL900 tablet.

Reportedly with two touch keyboards – one which operates in ‘split’ mode so that users can type with their thumbs – the Windows 8 operating system will make it easy for users who type messages or fill in forms whilst walking for example, so they can still hold their mobile device securely.

The new user interface design will allow operators to use touch-screen functionality to navigate and use apps, to use gestures to control how the interface behaves, and to use enhanced internet browser attributes, amongst other features.

In response to customer demand for tablet-based applications, TAAP plans to provide a number of its established applications on the new operating system, including vehicle inspections; data capture; job allocation & scheduling; deliveries; repairs & maintenance.

TAAP is currently offering applications on Windows 6.5 and the Windows Phone 7.5 Metro operating systems, as well as iPad/iPhone. TAAP’s Windows Phone 7 applications, which run on handsets such as the Nokia Lumia 800, the HTC Radar, and the Samsung Omnia W, allow users to navigate through screens using gesture controls to complete job details easily and quickly. The interface is clear and easy to use which assists field service personnel to complete jobs more easily.

TAAP’s applications will also work on devices such as the HTC Titan and the forthcoming iPhone 5 (rumoured), which have larger screens than a traditional mobile phone, but are not quite as large as a tablet.

These particular applications are available through the Microsoft Market Place as well as directly from TAAP, which will enable users to download an application straight to their existing handset and start using it immediately. This means applications such as TAAP Advantage Lite can be used instantly for electronically documenting the delivery of a product or service.

Applications don’t just operate solely using a device – any information captured or sent is saved within a secure web portal which can be configured to display reports in the form of graphs and charts. Customers can easily build their own reports within the system to show management information such as productivity levels or outstanding issues. These ‘back-office’ solutions make use of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 online, for which TAAP is committed to providing off-the-shelf and customised systems.

This functionality will also be available on the new Windows 8 operating system when it is released next year, so clients can look forward to increased flexibility and easy to use monitoring tools.

Steve Higgon, Product Architect commented:  "Windows 8 is an ideal platform for TAAP’s software solutions as they are designed with data collection and information sharing/transfer in mind. Being able to use the same operating system on different devices makes it easier to develop applications that behave the same on tablets, PDAs, and PCs, as users only need to become familiar with the software and not with different operating systems.

"Windows 8 will give users iPad-like performance with the flexibility to use all your office applications on the same device. This means information transfer using TAAP’s software could be even more streamlined than it already is.”

TAAP is a leading provider of software solutions which allow organisations to mobilise their operations using hand held computers.

Tel: +44 (0) 845 230 9787
Email: angela.walker@ontaap.com
Website: www.ontaap.com

New partners in Europe for Atlantis

New Partners In UK, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland, France And Norway Work With Atlantis ILIO To Accelerate Desktop Virtualisation Opportunities.

Atlantis Computing™, a leader in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) storage and performance optimisation solutions, today announced it has appointed a range of new partners to its VDI Solution Partner Programme in Europe.

New partners include Kelway, Intercept IT, Centralis and Foundation IT in the UK, along with DataSolutions in Ireland, ActivLan in France and Commaxx in Norway. By joining the Atlantis Computing VDI Solution Partner Programme, resellers and distributors will benefit from a unique opportunity to complement their existing VDI offerings with a solution architected to help them grow their business around desktop virtualisation.

The Atlantis ILIO™ software virtual appliance allows customers to reduce the cost of their virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) implementations by cutting the amount of storage normally required as part of any project. Alongside this immediate opportunity to cut spending, Atlantis ILIO boosts performance to ensure user acceptance of virtual desktops and ensures security measures can be deployed without reducing the number of users per server.

The solution is easily deployed by channel partners into existing VMware View, Citrix XenDesktop or Quest vWorkspace deployments to either support more users on the same storage or address ongoing scalability and performance issues.

“We seem to have been at the tipping point for VDI going mainstream for some time, but there have been two major obstacles to overcome: the potentially high storage costs for a customer during an implementation, and issues around ongoing user acceptance,” commented David Cumberworth, Vice President Sales for Northern Europe at Atlantis Computing. “Atlantis ILIO has been designed to solve these problems in a manner that is both simple to implement for partners, and cost-effective for the customer. By taking this approach and complementing the existing VMware, Citrix, and Quest VDI solutions that are on the market, we are helping our channel partners to deliver a lower cost per desktop and drive wider adoption of these technologies.”

Andrew Sellers, Director at Foundation IT said, “We are one of VMware’s Leading Partners for delivering virtual desktop solutions to customers based on VMware View. Working with Atlantis Computing allows us to offer our customers a VDI solution that delivers significant CAPEX savings whilst providing ‘better than PC’ user experience. Bringing VMware View and Atlantis ILIO together means that we can deliver solutions that achieve the operational simplicity and scalability that desktop virtualisation always promised at the same cost of a traditional PC.”

“Centralis is a leading provider of virtualisation solutions, covering the desktop, server and storage platforms. We have chosen to work with Atlantis Computing to enhance our overall service offerings and the value that we are able to deliver to customers through centralising their desktop infrastructure deployments,” said Robert Greenslade, Sales and Marketing Director at Centralis. “The market for VDI is continuing to grow as organisations want to reduce their spending on IT and improve desktop management, and we see Atlantis as a key technology partner to deliver significant cost savings through optimising the customers chosen storage platform whilst delivering a rich user experience for VDI desktops.”

“Intercept IT is one of the UK’s leading cloud computing and virtualisation service providers,” Richard Gilder, CEO at Intercept IT commented. “The market for Virtual Desktops has grown exponentially as organisations reduce their spending on IT, and embrace new strategies such as consumerisation, BYOD and cloud based services. Working with Atlantis will help us to ensure that customers see the results from moving to virtual desktops that they demand, as well as complementing our existing virtualisation partners.”

Atlantis Computing is exhibiting at the following events in Europe:

• VMworld Europe, Copenhagen, October 18th to 20th. Stand 64
• Citrix Synergy, Barcelona, October 26th to 28th. Stand 521.

To arrange a meeting at either of these events with Atlantis Computing, please contact sales@atlantiscomputing.com

FACTFILE:
About the VDI Solution Partner Programme

The Atlantis VDI Solution Partner Programme supports its certified technology and solution partners with sales tools, training, and marketing materials to fuel their success. As a channel driven company, Atlantis Computing embraces partners that have built a virtualisation practice and works in partnership to enable their long-term growth and success. For more information on the Atlantis VDI Solution Partner Programme and a list of current partners, please visit: http://www.atlantiscomputing.com/partners/solutions/

About Atlantis Computing

Atlantis Computing is transforming enterprise desktop computing by solving the challenges of virtual desktop deployments: storage costs, performance and the impact of security on server density. The Atlantis ILIO software complements Citrix, VMware, and Quest VDI solutions to cut VDI costs and deliver a desktop that is faster than a PC. With Atlantis ILIO, IT organisations can deploy 4-7 times more desktops on the same storage footprint, making VDI more affordable by both cutting the amount of storage needed per desktop and enabling the use of less expensive storage. Atlantis Computing is privately held and funded by El Dorado Ventures, Partech International and Cisco Systems with headquarters in Mountain View, California, and offices in London, England and Bangalore, India.

Greening Government ICT Strategy will deliver significant opportunities for ICT industry

Cloud computing, shared services and green technologies will be key public sector ICT investments up until 2015, according to Advanced Business Solutions

27 September 2011 – The Greening Government ICT Strategy will provide the UK ICT industry with significant opportunities, according to Advanced Business Solutions. The draft ICT Strategy, which will be published in October 2011, highlights that cloud computing, shared services and 'green' technologies will be key Government initiatives over the next few years, providing suppliers of these technologies and services with considerable opportunities.

“Once the Greening Government ICT Strategy has been published, public sector organisations will increasingly demand services and technologies that reduce green house gas emissions and waste”, says Dean Dickinson, Managing Director (Public Sector and Enterprise) of Advanced Business Solutions.

The Greening Government ICT strategy is intended to minimise the impact of the UK Government on the environment and reduce both green house gas emissions and waste in support of the Government’s commitment to achieve a 25% reduction in green house gas emissions by 2015. Covering the full life cycle impact of Government ICT, the strategy introduces key and far-reaching initiatives and commitments from procurement of ICT through to the disposal of it.

A key initiative outlined in the Strategy is the increased Government adoption of cloud computing due to the cloud’s green credentials. The move to shared applications and services is also recommended, giving ICT providers with shared services’ experience the upper hand. In addition, the Strategy highlights the importance of introducing green technologies into government departments including those that can enable mobile working, paperless operations and improved collaboration.

Dickinson says, “The majority of targets set out in the Strategy document will need to be delivered between April 2012 and April 2015. This will lead to increased demand for a range of green technologies and services over the next three and a half years.”

Dickinson adds, “We have seen a number of Government departments adopt green technologies and services over the past few years including cloud computing, shared services and green software solutions. The introduction of the Greening Government ICT Strategy will push those Government departments that have not yet invested in green ICT to adopt sustainable technologies and IT services, providing the ICT industry with significant public sector opportunities despite the looming cuts.”

FACTFILE:

Advanced Business Solutions (ABS) provides leading integrated business applications and services that enable public, private and third sector organisations to retain control, improve visibility and gain efficiencies whilst continually improving corporate performance. ABS prides itself on getting close to its customers by understanding their businesses and responding to their evolving needs.
www.advancedcomputersoftware.com/abs

RSA Group to deliver Risk Assessment and Management service in the cloud

Global insurer, RSA has been announced as a new customer for a cloud-based Risk Assessment and Management solution from leading GRC cloud-computing company, Xactium.

Following a successful implementation with one of RSA’s largest clients accessed by 180 sites, Xactium will now assist RSA in implementing a market leading risk assessment and management system for its global customers.

Emerging as the preferred solution in a competitive bid, Xactium Risk and Audit Manager will be adopted initially by Global Consulting (GC), within the UK Group, to sustain a service utilising specialist expertise across a wide range of industries, to track and record Risk Management activities on a global basis and provide client portal services.

The FTSE 100 Company selected Xactium’s solution to enable better visibility and transparency of their client risk and audit activities. The solution is built on an award-winning cloud computing platform. It will support the remote capturing, collating and analysing of risk data and self assessment questionnaires, enabling RSA to gain a real-time view of their risk and self assessment activities.

Xactium’s Risk and Audit solution will be accessible from any location without installation, and uses the Internet to provide business users with secure access to risk information.

Giles Baxter, UK IS & Change Director at RSA, welcomed the agreement: “We are committed to delivering a modern risk assessment and management solution to our business, which should be achieved in a fraction of the time thanks to the agility of Xactium’s cloud-based solutions,” he said. “By delivering our risk assessment and management services in this way, we will be better equipped to proactively manage our critical risk and audit data, enabling us to get an immediate view of our clients' risk position.”

Dr Andy Evans, MD of Xactium, said: “We are delighted to assist RSA in delivering such an innovative solution to their global business. Using the flexibility and speed of the cloud and Xactium’s Risk and Compliance solutions, RSA can be assured that they are delivering a truly collaborative and customer-led risk service.”


FACTFILE:
With a 300 year heritage, RSA is one of the world’s top multinational quoted insurance groups. RSA has major operations in the UK, Scandinavia, Canada, Ireland, Asia and the Middle East, Latin America and Central and Eastern Europe and has the capability to write business in over 130 countries. Focusing on general insurance, RSA has around 22,000 employees and, in 2010, its net written premiums were £7.5 billion

Within the UK, RSA is the second largest commercial lines insurer, covering the insurance and risk management needs of a significant number of FTSE 100 companies. It has a full multi-distribution capability, writing business through brokers and corporate partners, direct and online. RSA is also one of the UK’s top four personal motor and household insurers.

RSA was the first UK carbon neutral insurer. The company has cut its carbon footprint by half since 2000 and has offset the remainder by purchasing voluntary carbon reductions.

http://www.rsagroup.com/

ActiveXperts Software releases Network Monitor 7.3 - easy and powerful network monitoring

ActiveXperts, a top provider of network monitoring and mobile messaging software, is releasing ActiveXperts Network Monitor 7.3. ActiveXperts' latest update to its network monitoring solution is designed to bring affordable network monitoring to any sized company. ActiveXperts Network Monitor checks the network for failures and irregularities.

Monitor all aspects of your servers, workstations, IP devices, applications, databases, cloud, environment and more. Run the software on a central computer, without the need to install agents on the monitored computers.

ActiveXperts Network Monitor 7.3 adds new checks, including: MS Index Server, SMPP, Citrix ICA, Citrix XenApp, Registry and more, besides.

It includes all latest anti-virus / internet security suites. ActiveXperts Network Monitor 7.3 has enhanced support for PowerShell scripting; as a result, it comes with over a 100 new PowerShell scripts that users can use directly in Network Monitor.

The product has a new graphing tool, to create multiple graphs in one screen. Users can create graphs on different time intervals in history, with different checks plotted into one screen.

New in Network monitor 7.3 are templates: you can now easily define a set of checks for new servers and devices without the need to create them one-by-one. A set of checks can be copied and pasted with a simple Host/IP change. There are many GUI enhancements to the software.

Network Monitor now supports Syslog logging. Use this type of logging to log to a Syslog server or management console, in order to have unified logging.

FACTFILE:

ActiveXperts Network Monitor runs on the following operating systems: Windows 2008 R2 (x64), Windows 2008 (x64/x86), Windows 2003 (x64/x86), Windows 7 (x64/x86), Windows Vista (x64/x86), and Windows XP (x64/x86). For more information about the product, visit the following web site: www.activexperts.com/network-monitor

For a list of built-in checks, see: www.activexperts.com/network-monitor/check
The product can be downloaded from the download site. This is a fully functioning product; it expires after 30 days.

Reducing the risks of Cloud computing

A special article provided by Advanced 365 on the risks of Cloud Computing and carried by That's Technology as a service to our readers.

Advanced 365 highlights key issues for businesses looking to minimise the risk of moving to a cloud computing model

Cloud computing is accelerating into mainstream business life. According to a recent report released by market research firm Forrester Research, the global cloud computing market is expected to grow from $40.7 billion to $240 billion by 2020.

Despite this anticipated surge in interest many organisations remain cautious about moving their IT services to the Cloud. Recent high profile server problems that led to partial server downtime of Amazon’s Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2) service have once again raised the topic of cloud computing security.

A survey conducted by network services provider Colt has revealed a surprising distrust of the Cloud. 45 per cent of the 500 senior IT executives surveyed stated that they saw security concerns as the biggest risk associated with moving to Cloud computing, while 42 per cent said they were concerned about damaging the reputation of their brands as a result of performance or security-related issues.

Neil Cross, managing director of leading managed services and cloud computing provider, Advanced 365, highlights five key points for consideration by organisations moving to Cloud computing.

Choose a reputable provider

Cloud computing is not necessarily a bigger risk than in-house IT, just a different risk. Previously, the responsibility of maintaining a secure and smooth running in-house IT infrastructure sat exclusively within your organisation. By moving into the Cloud you are now sharing this burden of control with another provider and whilst the safety of your data is of paramount importance to you, it is also vital to your Cloud provider’s business reputation too. Choosing a reputable Cloud provider who is willing to provide you with details of its uptime and performance records to alleviate any fears you have concerning their reliability is critical to the success of the project.

The devil is in the detail

Before you commence any IT outsourcing project it is vital that you agree tight service level agreements (SLAs) with your service provider in writing. Agreeing strict contractual terms will rubberstamp expectations around availability, downtime and maintenance as well as the penalties that would apply if these levels are not met.

It’s important to remember that SLAs do not have to be ‘one-size-fits-all’ agreements. Complex organisations typically have multiple SLAs to cover separate parts of the business at various times throughout the day. Ensure that your SLAs are tailored to your organisation’s needs so that your key systems are always available during business hours.

You can never plan too much

Just because the Cloud is quick and easy to deploy doesn’t mean you should make a hurried decision which could severely impact the day-to-day running of your business. Like any other major IT project, it is essential that you plan thoroughly before moving to the Cloud.

In particular, you should think carefully about who is going to manage the project, consider the potential risks of migration, how to maintain business continuity and ensure that testing is scheduled outside of business hours to minimise any disruption resulting from downtime. It’s also essential for you to make sure that you can quickly switch back to your previous systems if things aren’t working. A measured approach to the Cloud in the short-term will reap long-term dividends.

Talk to a services partner to determine which option is right for you

From public to private and from applications to infrastructure, there are a bewildering number of Cloud computing options. Take the time to fully understand the differences between the offerings of the major providers such as Amazon, Google or Microsoft or talk to a trusted services partner who clearly understands the Cloud and has relationships with all major IT Cloud suppliers. Your partner should be able to clearly demonstrate the costs of entering and withdrawing from the Cloud and advise which on-demand applications are best suited to your business.

Know where your data is going to be stored

Variation in data protection regulations mean that different territories have different data protection regimes so make sure you know where your data is going to be physically stored. During the initial negotiations with your cloud provider it’s essential to clarify if there is a regulatory requirement for your data to be held within a certain area, for example Europe, and if so make this a term of the contract. Leading Cloud providers will have a strong grasp on which information must be held in particular localities so double check that your provider understands the data demands of your sector.

By enabling rapid access to leading technology on-demand, Cloud computing is a cost effective and flexible alternative to inefficient, in-house IT systems. Cloud computing is the future; however the fear of potential security breaches is understandably making organisations question whether moving to the Cloud is worth the risk. By working with a specialist partner, organisations can minimise these risks and benefit from all that Cloud computing has to offer.

www.advancedcomputersoftware.com/365

Advanced 365 designs, deploys, operates and improves IT services from the desktop to the data centre, helping customers to align their IT to their core business requirements. Advanced 365 aims to help IT departments free themselves from day to day operational activity to allow them to deliver strategic value back to their business by creating an agile and scalable infrastructure that is closely aligned to their core business operations.

Trustmarque help the police

Trustmarque Solutions has announced that its Commercial Benchmarking service has saved Durham Constabulary police force a very useful £190,000 per annum on licensing costs, plus also ensuring it was eligible for future support and benefits from Microsoft.

Durham Constabulary needed to review its licensing agreements as it had cut the number of computers it used.

During the review period they realised they should move its licence renewal forward in order to ensure it could support its desktop operating system for the next six years and to enable a programmeof work to match its ICT Strategy.

Durham police also had a good deal of future development work planned because it was moving towards a SharePoint strategy, plus a new Microsoft Office environment with Office 2010, and exploring the deployment of Microsoft Lync.

As it was working to tight deadlines, it realised it needed outside, specialist assistance, so brought Trustmarque Solutions in to help it to find cost-effective solutions.

Steve Wright, Head of ICT Service Operations and Support for Durham Constabulary, explains: “Our key aim was getting value for money on procurement. We were using a Microsoft Select agreement, where you basically buy from the catalogue, the most expensive way of licensing.

“We talked to Trustmarque about their benchmarking service and it sounded ideal. We had worked with Trustmarque before and had a good relationship with them, and trusted them to point us in the right direction.”

Trustmarque worked with Durham Constabulary to identify a 'strategy roadmap' for the next six years, around various products it was looking to invest in, providing information on all the products that would be available to it under various Microsoft agreements, what the benefits would be and how this fitted in with their future vision.

The process was completed within five months, and in February 2011 Durham Constabulary signed a new agreement which should help it make savings of £190,000 over the course of the next three years.

But there are other benefits, too. Steve Wright adds: “The Trustmarque Commercial Benchmarking team was great. They spoke to us about what we were planning to do with the organisation, helped us to do an inventory of what licences we had and which could be redeployed within the organisation.

“Trustmarque outputs helped us to outline the life time of the products and how these fit in with our future strategy. Trustmarque came back with pricing for the various different licensing models available from Microsoft, and provided guidance on what would suit our needs best.

“Working with Trustmarque has given us a much richer understanding of Microsoft licensing. Using the Commercial Benchmarking service helped us to decide our procurement route, and saved us a lot of money.”

“The work conducted at Durham Constabulary shows how Trustmarque’s services are continuing to drive down the cost of IT in the public sector,” Simon Rutt, services and solutions director comments.

“Through this service alone we have seen organisations save, on average, 36 percent on a new or renewed Microsoft Enterprise Agreement. This is a fantastic achievement and the benefits of the cost savings can be realised immediately, and aside from this many of our customers come away with a more comprehensive view of their ICT estate, enabling them to ensure compliance and plan ahead.”

For more information about Trustmarque visit www.trustmarque.com, call them on 0845 2101 500 or email info@trustmarque.com.

Certainly not 'head in the clouds' as hosting and cloud company iomart Group plc profits rise 618%!

iomart Group plc, the managed hosting and cloud computing services company, has just announced a very healthy 618% rise in profit before tax to the London Stock Exchange.

The company’s financial results year ending 31 March 2011 showed profit before tax rose to £2.8m (2010:£0.4m, before gain reduction in deferred consideration of £09m). iomart Group’s revenue also showed a big increase, up 38% to £25.3m from £18.3m in the previous financial year.

The majority of growth announced by the Glasgow-head-quartered company came from its hosting (http://iomarthosting.com) operations which generated revenue of £17.7m, a rise of 61% from £11.0m in 2010. This figure includes revenues from the acquisition in November 2010 of Titan Internet for £4.2m, however even taking into account this purchase, hosting revenue still jumped by 47% with many customers looking specifically for cloud-based and enterprise hosting solutions.

Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart Group plc, said: “Cloud computing is something of a buzz word with many companies who add the ‘cloud’ tag to everything they do, yet don't back it up with reliable delivery mechanisms.

“At iomart we have built our technologies from the ground up specifically to be delivered via cloud. As a result we are becoming recognised as an authority on the provision of cloud-hosting solutions and are well positioned to take advantage as the market evolves and people look for reliable vendors.”

iomart Hosting won 400 new orders over the course of the year, many of which were additional orders from existing customers. Increasingly these orders include some aspect of cloud or virtual computing in the overall solution package.

Angus MacSween added: “With more businesses looking to the cloud for their data solutions we believe we have positioned ourselves well to take advantage of this market moving forward. We are in a market that is growing and that is here to stay and we fully expect to participate strongly in that growth.”

Symmetry signs up to ‘Cloud Vendor Charter’ as more colleges turn to cloud-based accounting

Symmetry, a financial management systems provider, has become one of the first suppliers to sign up to BASDA’s (Business Application Software Developer’s Association) ‘Cloud Vendor Charter’ that encourages vendors to adopt a responsible approach to data management, application availability, security and customer management for cloud-based solutions.

Earlier in 2011, Symmetry launched its Financialsc cloud-based accounting solution as a result of increasing demand from the FE sector. Symmetry’s Sales & Operations Director, Julian Sayer commented, “Our decision to join the charter demonstrates our commitment to the cloud and the interests of our customers.

“Despite the fact that there is already significant interest in our Financialsc cloud-based solution as part of a wider cost-cutting and shared services strategy, there is also still plenty of confusion and apprehension surrounding this new method of delivering and using software.”

“As a member of the charter, we are governed by best practice, in all the key areas of security, availability, compliance and back-up of data. This will help provide greater peace of mind to customers and give a clearer outline of how cloud-based accounting will operate in practice.” he added.

According to BASDA, the Charter developed by members of the Cloud Computing Special Interest Group aims to enhance the commercial success of both Customer and Vendor. Adhering to the Charter should not be overly burdensome for the Vendor but should assure the Customer that the Vendor deals with their organisation in a professional fashion and follows industry best practices.

Symmetry recently hosted a webinar on the benefits of cloud-based accounting solutions. Over 50 colleges attended and 66% believed that cloud-based software would be deployed by the majority of colleges within the next two years.

FACTFILE:
Symmetry is a software company that specialises in the development and supply of business-to-business financial solutions within the UK. The company’s core product, Symmetry Financials, is a fully integrated financial and management accounting solution already in use at over 100 UK organisations, ranging in size from £3M turnover to £250M turnover and with user populations from 2 to 800+ users.

The solution Financials includes General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Commitment Accounting with purchasing and funds control, Assets, Information Manager, real-time reporting, secure e-procurement and comprehensive systems integration with Symmetry’s EasyLink.

In 2010, the company launched a cloud based version of Financials called Financialsc

www.symmetry.co.uk

Secure Cloud computing for using personal IT devices at work

Cloud computing applications can provide employees with a secure and effective means to use their personal IT devices at work without compromising their organisation’s security levels. This is the claim of Advanced 365, a managed services and Cloud computing provider.

With smartphones, tablets and non-PC notebooks now everyday items in many homes, there's a growing reluctance amongst many employees to use outdated IT systems in the workplace.

Some firms and organisations have decided to allow authorised staff to use their own IT device to perform their role within the workplace or elsewhere.

Whilst this shift in attitude is being welcomed by the end users and their line managers, it has, understandably, raised concerns and questions amongst IT managers.

“Many organisations still insist employees only use recognised and secure IT devices on their company’s infrastructure. However as tech savvy office workers look to use the latest mobile IT devices in preference to using ageing company PCs and laptops, network security concerns are inevitably resurfacing,” says Neil Cross, who is the MD at Advanced 365.

Cross went on to say: “To address this challenge, it is essential organisations ensure their employees have authentication, identity verification and security applications installed on their IT devices before allowing them to access their corporate network.”

Developments in Cloud computing technology are now providing an opportunity for organisations to address these security fears without losing control of their desktop environment, even if they can’t directly control the device being used by the employee.

These Cloud services, such as Microsoft’s Office 365 (currently in beta testing), allow users to access their company network and applications like email over a secure internet connection as and when they require for a monthly fee. Or organisations can opt for a more integrated approach by utilising applications like VDI, Citrix or online portals like Microsoft SharePoint to deliver their business applications via a properly secured controlled environment.

Cross points out: “By choosing the Cloud computing platform best suited to their requirements, organisations can protect their data and ensure only secure devices are capable of accessing their network. Moving to the Cloud also allows organisations to address the challenge of meeting the rising demand from employees to access the latest devices without compromising the security of their network, which will ensure the best of both worlds.”

Cross ends by saying: “While Cloud computing technology can reduce the pressure that IT teams are under to maintain hardware, and potentially reduce costs, working with a trusted partner that has the breadth of skills to understand these new and more complex environments is now more important than ever.”

www.advanced365.com