ManagedHPC from X-ISS Helps University of Wisconsin Focus on Research
With on-site installation, secure remote system monitoring, a practical reporting process and X-ISS professionals available anytime of the day or night, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee engineers were able to focus on their research instead of HPC administration.
Houston, TX (Vocus/PRWEB) March 22, 2011 – When the University of Wisconsin (UW) at Milwaukee procured a high performance computing (HPC) system to support research for its engineering program, the department struggled to find experienced HPC job candidates. In order to meet the department’s production goals, UW contracted X-ISS and its ManagedHPC service to quickly install and set-up the system as well as provide ongoing management services.
When UW began a search to hire and train a person to administer the complex HPC cluster required for research, only a small handful of candidates who applied for the position were qualified. X-ISS offers an outsourcing management service ManagedHPC to provide clients with the freedom to focus on research while leaving the HPC system in the care of competent administrators.
With on-site installation, secure remote system monitoring, a practical reporting process and X-ISS professionals available anytime of the day or night, university engineers were able to focus on their research instead of HPC administration.
“X-ISS has been able to handle getting the system up and running, software installations, and proactively handle technical issues so we could focus on working with the Engineering staff on specific code needs and department usage of this shared resource,” said David Crass, Director of Research Computing at the University of Wisconsin. “It has allowed us to focus our attention where it was most needed.”
With the complexity of today’s cluster HPC systems, many organizations struggle with the challenge of system management. Industry analysts have indicated an industry-wide shortage of qualified system administrators with the right experience and qualifications to successfully integrate, manage and maintain HPC systems. ManagedHPC helps bridge this gap, allowing customers to focus on their core engineering or research, while providing the peace-of-mind that their HPC resources are being handled with care.
“X-ISS was able to step in and assist researchers at the University of Wisconsin by removing the burden of management of their HPC system, so scientists could continue their research without distraction. The outsourcing management service, ManagedHPC, places the HPC system in capable hands so researchers can focus on their core value to the university and getting their jobs done quickly and efficiently.”
With an increase in HPC systems used for more complex research, demand for X-ISS outsourcing services will also increase. In addition to ManagedHPC, X-ISS has DecisionHPC, an HPC information warehouse and Web-based monitoring and analytics solution to help customers maximize productivity, assist with future computing resource needs and align HPC resources with organizational goals.
