News

Infrastructure Smackdown

June 02, 2010

Bell Techlogix Hosts: Infrastructure Smackdown Seminar

Delivered in an informative panel format, Bell brought together top technology leaders to explain to organizations how their own companies were moving forward to address the changing and emerging technologies of the future.  Besides the most fabulous breakfast spread you’ve ever seen, the array of panelists at the latest Bell Techlogix technology seminar was just as impressive.  Including representatives from seemingly every major technology company in the world, the panelists discussed societal trends and what each of their companies had to offer in the upcoming years of IT development.

Dina Ferris, the Master Solutions Architect for HP discussed how she believes the state of most IT teams is in disarray, and there is no magic button or “gizmo” that is going to fix this.  She believes we need to get back to service-oriented IT solutions and that it is her responsibility to design IT programs and functions that can help IT teams relate better and function on a more efficient level.

John Richardson, a 5th Generation Enterprise X-Architect for IBM talked about a "smarter" planet.  We’ve all seen the IBM commercials discussing smarter grids, smarter food, etc.  In his discussion, he brought to life how IBM is making some of these things possible.  They are developing ways for America to waste less food.  Grocery stores currently waste $48 billion worth of food each year  and IBM thinks this problem can be solved by food “tracing”.  If we follow the food from the farmers to the grocery store shelves, we can better determine the shelf-life, the expiration dates and as a result throw out less food.  Also, he talked about developing smarter grids, smarter telecommunications and even smarter healthcare.  IBM is definitely in the business of efficiency and growth.

Bill Roberts, a Consulting Systems Engineer for Cisco discussed all the ways Cisco is currently making an impact on the world.  Cisco is unifying technology as a whole to help us communicate better, not only as individual IT teams, but as an entire planet.  Their entire journey is about simplifying data center infrastructures and delivering new and innovative technologies that serve a greater purpose than just being new.

Aaron Rhoden, an Enterprise Technology Expert from Dell brought to light how Dell is currently working on discovering new storage space.  He said that Dell views a lack of storage not as a problem, but an opportunity for more growth.  He explained how data storage requirements are expected to grow by a factor of 10 by the year 2011 and after that, the possibilities appear endless.  Storage space is one of the most significant issues challenging developing businesses. Dell is in the business of helping you keep your data and information. They know how important it is to keep records and information about clients (past and present) and they are working hard to make this a possibility for every business - regardless of how large or how small.  Even more than making advanced storage available, they are working on making it extremely affordable.

Rich Seymore, an Account Technology Strategist from Microsoft talked largely about Cloud Computing and Desktop Virtualization.  He said that Cloud Computing can be a lifesaver for some organizations, but it can be a task for others.  Depending on where you want to spend most of your money as a business, Cloud Computing allows you to curb your spending based on your individual needs and uses.  Based on capacity management, Cloud allows you to be flexible with what you need, what you purchase, and what you use.  Desktop Virtualization has become a “must have” for many businesses and education environments, because it allows you to open your individual desktop on any machine in the building or on campus.  It is increasing security by letting each person have their own login/password, and it is decreasing the frustration of losing documents, carrying laptops, etc.

John Raines, a Sr. Systems Engineer at VMware Inc. discussed all of the success his company has had over the past few years and how VMware is going to be a major contributor to the success of IT programs for years to come.  They’re striving for “right-size” provisioning; meaning, you as a company only purchase the technology you need, and you aren’t wasting money on large-scale technology that you are not yet ready to use.  They are working on making technology more accessible and more cost-efficient for small businesses, as well as developing more virtualization solutions. 

Overall, the seminar was extremely helpful in positioning the direction of IT development, what the next few years will mean for technology and how it will impact us as individuals, schools, and businesses.  After lunch, the panelists looked to the audience and answered numerous questions regarding their specific IT environment.  Additionally, they addressed questions about the go-forward strategies of their companies and the aforementioned technologies.  Attendees were concerned about technology impacts to their business, but more importantly about the benefits each of these things would bring to their end-users and customers.  If this information is beneficial to you, make sure to attend future Bell Techlogix seminars and stay on top of the newest information about technology releases and development.  To view all upcoming seminars and trade shows, visit http://www.belltechlogix.com/about-us/seminars/.