CommunicAsia2016, EnterpriseIT2016 and BroadcastAsia2016 focus on digital transformation

Lindy Wee, CE, Singapore Exhibition Services, said in her speech that attendees to the event can look forward to more than 900 product launches.

The opening ceremony.

Robots, virtual reality, drones, and smart devices are the innovations fuelled by digital transformation that will pave the way of Asia Pacific’s future. These innovations are at the heart of CommunicAsia2016, EnterpriseIT2016 and BroadcastAsia2016, which opened today and will run to 3 June 2016 at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. The event will gather about 1,800 exhibitors and 34 international pavilions from 53 countries and regions, bringing innovations critical for digital transformation in the region.

“Disruptive models from businesses like Uber and Netflix – who are speakers of this year’s events – have propelled organisations’ into innovating and reinventing themselves to stay ahead in a digitally transformed world. The programme for CommunicAsia2016, EnterpriseIT2016 and BroadcastAsia2016 presents participants with cutting-edge technology from robotics, Internet of Things (IoT) manifestations, virtual reality (VR) and more, alongside topical, forward-thinking conversations led by industry thought leaders,” said Lindy Wee, Chief Executive, Singapore Exhibition Services.

Gabriel Lim, CE-designate of the Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Co-Managing Director of the Info-communications Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) said, “We are moving into an exciting digital future, marked by connectivity and creativity, which will bring about exciting possibilities for Singapore. The new IMDA will help Singapore seize these opportunities, by implementing the Infocomm Media 2025 masterplan, and creating a vibrant and globally competitive infocomm media (ICM) sector here. CommunicAsia and BroadcastAsia are important shows that bring different parts of the ICM ecosystem together, creating platforms for individuals and companies to take the ICM sector to new frontiers. We look forward to working with our international partners and industry stakeholders to create a brighter future for us all.”

Powering digital transformation

For the first time, this year’s programme will feature the Asia ICT Innovation Forum, held in strategic partnership with Huawei. Happening today, the forum features speakers from the World Economic Forum, Singapore’s Smart Nation Programme Office, Huawei, Facebook and BT among others, discussing technology’s impact to Asia Pacific’s digital economy, how businesses can make global digital inclusion a reality, and the value of big data analytics today.

In addition to macroeconomic discussions, also new this year is the invitation-only CIO Forum, organised in partnership with the CIO Academy Asia, on 1 June. Speakers from IDA, The Farrer Park Company - Asia’s first integrated hub for healthcare and wellness, Tetra Pak and Agile Development will provide CIOs and CTOs will cover effective digital transformation for organisations. IdeasCollider, a mini-conference held in collaboration with The Innovators Institute on 2 June 2016, will feature speakers from Galen Growth Asia, Padang & Co, Samsung Asia, SAP Innovation Center Network and more.

The NXT@CommunicAsia2016 zone showcases products and solutions that can make enterprises, cities and consumers smarter, greener, and more efficient. Visitors will get to see the Double, a first-of-its-kind surveillance robot for home use by OTSAW, and the Birloki system, an urban street connector and space activator aimed at boosting city environmental spaces by Nerei.

The Birloki platform is a made-to-order self-standing set of Internet of Things sensors that can be coupled with a touch display and software. Placed at a bus stop, for instance, a Birloki structure might have the software to inform a user when the next bus is coming, how hot it is, and offer information about landmarks nearby.

ST Electronics' Connected Bus Stop.

Other showfloor highlights include ST Electronics’ launch of its Next-Gen Connected Bus Stop. The system leverages on smart sensors, smartphones to capture and analyse wide-ranging data including number of passengers at bus stops, bus loads and traffic conditions to provide timely and useful bus information for commuters. Operators can optimise operational efficiency and resource utilisation, as well as maintain high quality of services to commuters. ST Electronics signed a memorandum of understanding today with US-based Motorola Solutions to co-create innovative technologies for advanced secured communications in public safety, national security and enterprise sectors across the region.

2016 sees the largest gathering of satellite players from the region at SatComm2016, with participation from Inmarsat, Intelsat, MEASAT, Singtel and more. The exhibitors will be showcasing the latest innovations from high throughput satellites (HTS) monetisation and deployment models, to methods of customisation of spot beams and frequency reuse.

BroadcastAsia2016 hosts first-time exhibitors such as Cisco, Dell, Tata Communications, Level3 Communications and Hyku. For instance, Dell is showcasing how content experiences can be rejuvenated with the latest in 360 degree VR capabilities, and Hyku, a social TV application with second-screen sync technology.

Building on the success of its debut last year, the popular TV Everywhere! Zone returns with an emphasis on OTT and multiscreen solutions and explore the entire value chain of non-linear broadcasting.  In addition to the TV Everywhere! Zone, attendees can explore other themed zones, including the Cinematography/Film/Production Technology Zone – where exhibitors are demonstrating the latest motion picture production tools and software capabilities – and the Post Production Hub where industry experts will share their knowledge and experience using technology showcased at BroadcastAsia2016.

Oscar-nominated, Grammy-nominated producer of soundtracks, classical and jazz recordings and former Senior Vice President of Sony BMG Masterworks Christopher Craker will be a part of the lineup at the Post Production Hub, as well as award winning sound designer and composer of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Hobbit, and King Kong, Dave Whitehead.

Showfloor highlights include:

7th Sense: Native resolution uncompressed playback on a large screen. The company's Delta Media Server scales all the way from small form factor single HD playback to 12-output fully uncompressed video servers with live video input and 3D stereo capability.

The IDA Lab on Wheels is an industry-led initiative together with the government aimed at seeding students’ interest and exciting them to study technology via the experiential and engaging technology featured on the bus.

Smart City Global Solutions demonstrated smart street lighting at its booth. The street lights can be equipped with Wi-Fi, LEDs and LTE support. for instance.

The P-COM electrical car at the Temasek Polytechnic booth will cost an estimated S$1.30 to travel 50km.  A petrol-based car would cost S$10 to travel the same distance at current pump prices. The car has a USB interface to PCs and produces no emissions.

The YunZhong Kitten robot from Shenzhen YZrobot Technology is an education platform with voice recognition that can carry conversations with users. It will be available in September this year. Educational software is available in Chinese from Shenzhen YZrobot Technology, while Singapore partner Device Electronics produces content in English for the robot. The company is working on a wheeled platform to allow YunZhong to move physically. The two companies co-developed a low-cost robot (in yellow) for the smart home, and are working on a similar platform that will allow YunZhong to move around. 

Selfie stations for selfie lovers.

Game-play using a touch screen and overhead sensors at the IoT Lounge.

The event next year will be three days long, from 23 to 25 May 2017, and have BroadcastAsia2017 housed at Suntec Singapore. CommunicAsia2017, EnterpriseIT2017 will remain at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

Hashtags: #CommunicAsia2016, #BroadcastAsia2016, #EnterpriseIT2016
 
Interested?

Read the TechTrade Asia blog post about government initiatives announced at the event

Read the TechTrade Asia blog post about Device Electronics' robot

posted from Bloggeroid

KuangChi sets up ASEAN Innovation HQ in Singapore

KuangChi Science, a subsidiary of Kuang-Chi GCI, has established its ASEAN Innovation Headquarters in Singapore as a base for expansion throughout Asia, specifically in the ASEAN countries. Singapore is an important international finance and commerce hub and ranked as the most technology-ready country in the world by the World Economic Forum, the company said.

The KuangChi Science booth at CommunicAsia2016.

The newly-created Singapore-based headquarters is a creative hub for furthering development of the company’s Future City strategy. KuangChi Science has also signed an agreement to cooperate with HyalRoute Communications Group, which has already received investments totaling more than US$600 million from Kuang-Chi.

According to Dr Zhang Yangyang, Co-CEO of KuangChi Science, “Singapore provides an ideal innovation base and by creating an innovation headquarters in Singapore, KuangChi Science plans to further collaborate with Singaporean companies and institutes for research and development.”

KuangChi Science has also announced its smart city objective, the Future City Strategy. The goal of building smart cities is to improve the quality of life for urban dwellers by using technology to improve service efficiency. The strategy has been influenced by Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative, which was launched in 2014.

KuangChi Science has been making investments in security, data transfer, and wireless coverage technology to help make cities smarter and better, effectively optimising key services to improve city living around the world. HyalRoute has been one of the Kuang-Chi’s key investments to support this goal. KuangChi Science’s products have created a foundation for the Future City and HyalRoute’s communication network will make the city’s picture more complete.

HyalRoute, now a part of Kuang-Chi GCI’s portfolio of technology innovation companies, is one of the most advanced network infrastructure developers and transnational telecommunication operators in the Asia Pacific market. The company is engineering and implementing an international fiberoptic network spanning more than 1 million km in length and linking 50 countries.

“HyalRoute’s technology is part of KuangChi Science’s Future City Strategy, which utilises KuangChi Science’s Cloud, Solarship, Traveler, and more,” said Guo Jie, CEO of the Singapore Innovation HQ.

Early this month, Kuang-Chi GCI launched an international innovation fund based in Israel to invest in companies worldwide. The newly established fund was created with an initial investment of US$50 million, and planned to expand to S$300 million over the next three years.

Kuang-Chi GCI refers to the Global Community of Innovation initiated by Kuang-Chi Group, which brings together innovators from all over the world and turns science fiction and dreams into reality to deliver the future to the world. Founded in 2010 by five distinguished Chinese scientists after completion of doctorate degrees at top universities, Kuang-Chi GCI is a global innovation group based in Shenzhen, China, which has made advancements in the fields of metamaterials, photonics, satellite technology, aviation, and robotics over the past five years. Kuang-Chi's metamaterials patents account for 86% of the worldwide total.

Acting through public companies, private holdings, and research institutes, the group’s value exceeds US$10 billion. The group has invested in companies including Solar Ship Inc., Martin Aircraft Company, biometrics pioneer Zwipe, and communications group HyalRoute. The Solarship hybrid aircraft can take 30 tons of payload and relies on solar power and lithium batteries. It has been used in Africa to deliver supplies to displaced people. The KuangChi Martin Jetpack is basically an aircraft big enough for one, while the Cloud is a tethered zeppelin that delivers connectivity to the land below. The Cloud was used for disaster relief in Shenzhen in December 2015, offering 24-hour surveillance capabilities to locate buried buildings and people after a landslide.

Interested?

Read the TechTrade Asia blog post about Kuang-Chi's Wi-Fi from the sky

Hashtag: #CommunicAsia2016

Dell enters embedded PC Market

· Dell Embedded Box PC 3000 and 5000 Series combine Dell’s quality, reliability and global reach with maximised supply chain support

· Rugged, fanless design for extended operation in harsh environments

· Long-term Dell Support and Deployment Services ensure support evolves with industrial PC product lifecycle and changing market dynamics

Dell today announced the launch of its first purpose-built industrial PC (IPC) products. The Embedded Box PC 3000 Series and 5000 Series are designed to take the embedded PC market mainstream. Available this summer (roughly Q2 to Q3), the products are fanless, ruggedised and built to provide customers fast time to market. With a history of rugged engineering innovation and extensive experience in OEM solutions, the products expand Dell’s Internet of Things (IoT) portfolio. Dell will bring the benefits of short lead times, an enterprise-class lifecycle, stability, service and support to customers who may be underserved by current embedded solutions.

Embedded computing is now everywhere. According to a Technavio study*, the embedded systems market was valued at more than US$11 billion in 2014 and is expected to reach US$23.1 billion in 2019, growing at a CAGR of almost 15%. Organic growth is being fuelled by falling component costs, improved power efficiencies, increasing business ROI needs and demand from the IoT.

However, the reality of long lead times, low device reliability, limited scalability, lack of security and manageability options and limited support hinder the development of the market. “Customers have consistently told us that current embedded solutions do not meet the level of cost-effective sophistication, scale and support they need for these to be a critical, reliable component of their operations,” said Ricky Chan, Sales Engineering Director, Dell OEM, Asia-Pacific and Japan. “Along with our new embedded products that can be ordered in quantities from one to thousands, Dell will bring our established business heritage to this new market: global scale, end-to-end IT and OT security portfolio, strong customisation and award-winning service and support.”

Dell’s Embedded Box PCs are fanless, important as the fan is the often most common component failure in embedded use cases, and also ideal for environments that require little noise. They can be used “headless” or with keyboard, mouse and monitor. The 3000 Series is powered by Intel Atom processors and designed for space-constrained applications, such as retail kiosks, automated vending devices and vehicles. The 5000 Series is optimised for performance and I/O scalability. Powered by Intel Core processors, it includes two PCI/PCIe card slots for adaptability. It provides high-bandwidth ideal for industrial PC and IoT use cases (multi-HD video streaming apps and high frequency sensor data sources) as well as manufacturing and automation control.

Other features:

· Operating temperature range from 0°C to 50°C

· Designed to MIL-STD 810G specifications

· DIN-rail, VESA, or wall mount options

· five-year lifecycle and OEM-ready options

· Global availability with Dell Support and Deployment services

· Microsoft Windows 7 Pro, Windows 7 Embedded, Windows 10 Pro and Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSB** and Ubuntu Desktop operating systems

Customers can take advantage of Dell’s global availability, trusted security and manageability options, and Dell Support and Deployment services including ProSupport which provides up to five years of end-to-end hardware support for the entire IoT product lifecycle.

Mark Taylor, President, OEM Computing Solutions, Arrow Electronics, said, “Dell’s technology strength and commitment to excellence matches our vision for the OEM and independent software vendor (ISV) marketplaces incredibly well. We are delighted to work with Dell and look forward to continued growth together.”

"Security and reliability are of the utmost importance to embedded PC customers," said Jon Melamut, VP of Commercial Devices Operations at Canonical. "We are very excited to partner with Dell as they launch the Dell Embedded Box PC 3000 Series and 5000 Series with Ubuntu Desktop, which provides software security and reliability to match that of Dell's hardware.”

Chet Hullum, GM of Industrial Solutions at Intel, said, “The Dell Embedded Box 3000 and 5000 Series Embedded Box PCs based on the 6th gen Intel Core Processor family and Intel Atom processor E3800 product family are designed to bridge the data needs of traditional operational technology with the manageability demands of information technology. The result is a solution that meets the needs of industrial and IoT customers.”

Hashtag: #CommunicAsia2016

*Technavio Global Embedded Systems Computer Market Report
**Available in late Summer 2016.

ST Electronics and Motorola Solutions to accelerate secure broadband solutions for government, enterprise

Representatives from ST Electronics and Motorola Solutions pose for a picture after the signing ceremony.

Singapore Technologies Electronics (ST Electronics) and Motorola Solutions will sign today a memorandum of understanding to co-create innovative technologies for advanced secured communications in public safety, national security and enterprise sectors.

ST Electronics is part of Singapore Technologies Engineering, a global engineering company specialising in the design, development and integration of advanced electronics and communications systems. The company brings to the partnership experience in the design and implementation of large-scale, mission-critical solutions as well as cybersecurity expertise. Motorola Solutions has over 80 years of global experience and deep domain expertise in mobilising mission-critical intelligence for the public safety and enterprise markets.

The primary focus of the partnership is to help government and enterprise organisations reach new levels of security and productivity through smarter and more secure technologies. This can range from increasing situational awareness and efficiency among first responders in the field to enabling better business-critical decisions. The collaboration will specifically accelerate the development of specialised technologies for high-security mission-critical broadband, cybersecurity solutions and purpose-built applications, all of which will be made commercially available in each company’s solution portfolio. In particular, the companies plan to collaborate on:

• Applications utilising Motorola Solutions’ Convergence Suite environment of WAVE interoperability and intelligent middleware solutions, which seamlessly link critical communications users across networks, regardless of the type of device they carry. 
• Security solutions to protect the integrity of sensitive communications, shield operational intelligence and defend against cyber threats. 
• Mission-critical public safety long-term evolution (LTE) solutions supporting both rapidly deployable solutions and large-scale implementations. 

Motorola Solutions introduced WAVE 7000 globally at the end of May for those who require high-performance push-to-talk (PTT) capabilities across broadband and land mobile radio networks.
Nationwide broadband PTT networks to augment communications networks in the public sector for public safety are a clear use case. The challenge had previously been maintaining interoperability with established networks such as land mobile radio (LMR). WAVE 7000 achieves this compatibility. LTE service providers can also use WAVE 7000 to provide a new service.

“This partnership lays an important foundation for both organisations to capitalise on our joined strength to benefit our customers. With shared global expertise and business dynamism, this partnership will create new technological frontiers with innovative solutions for the government and private sectors in the realms of cyber security and public safety," said Lee Fook Sun, President of ST Electronics.

“Together we will accelerate innovation and deliver advanced capabilities for government and enterprise organisations. By transforming operations and securely making available data both mobile and actionable, we will protect the security and stability of our cities and enable communities to thrive,” said Eduardo Conrado, EVP, Strategy and Innovation Office, Motorola Solutions.

According to Motorola, today’s public safety and enterprise environments are predominantly centred around voice communications, with the power of broadband yet to be harnessed. "We face increasingly complex threats in today’s environment, which require a more sophisticated response and information handling from public safety agencies. One of the greatest challenges is ensuring cyber security in a world of highly sensitive data that is essential to the way cities run. However these challenges can be overcome if we adopt a security-centric framework to enable enhanced monitoring and analytics. Collectively, the solutions from Motorola Solutions and ST Electronics will take advantage of new and emerging capabilities in mobile broadband technology to help public safety agencies in the region fully combine voice and data communications to create secure environments in ultimate security for a safer and more productive society. These solutions will help to increase situational awareness and safety for public safety and enterprise technology users, connecting many workers to rich, real-time information so they can dynamically interoperate and communicate with each other," said a Motorola representative.

Examples of results of the MoU could include:

 A bodyworn video camera integrated with sophisticated video analytics could identify a dangerous suspect in a large crowd. Sending and receiving multimedia data between public safety control rooms and the field, including high-resolution video, could identify hotspots around a crime scene or dangerous areas to keep the public away from.

 Purpose-built public safety applications could help officers manage an incident more safely and effectively by clearly mapping out the incident location, pinpointing nearby resources and providing secure voice communications to a wide range of responders regardless of the device they carry (including integrating two-way radio communications with users carrying smartphones and other devices.)

 An unmanned drone could also provide an aerial view of the scene as well as broadband connectivity to officers in the field so they can continue to communicate and interoperate with each other during an on-going incident.

Kx Systems to support IoT with streaming analytics

Kx Systems, a subsidiary of First Derivatives and a time-series analytics provider for streaming, real-time and historical data, has brought its expertise in financial markets to the world of the Internet of Things (IoT). Kx can enables effective IoT streaming analytics, which is becoming essential if organisations are to react in real-time to the information they are collecting and processing.

The company says its technology is orders of magnitude faster than traditional technologies, retrieving data in microseconds rather than seconds, aggregating data in milliseconds, not hours, and performing complex queries in seconds. Comparable analyses with traditional alternatives can take hours or even weeks to perform, the company said.
 
In the latest Kx report Opportunities and Challenges of Streaming Analytics and In-memory Computing featuring Gartner Research, Kx technology is shown to directly address the requirements of streaming analytics. Gartner forecasts that there will be over 6 billion connected devices in use worldwide in 2016. This figure is estimated to reach 21 billion by 2020 and will continue to increase dramatically. In 2016 alone 5.5 million new ‘things’ will get connected every day. These devices capture vast quantities of data, that Kx technology can help turn into valuable insight and action.

Przemek Tomczak, SVP IoT and Utilities at Kx Systems, says: “As IoT evolves and becomes the ‘Internet of Everything’, exciting new opportunities are emerging. This requires data to be processed and analysed in real-time, blending streaming and historical data from a diverse set of sources. Firms will then be able to reap significant benefits, including improved business operations, better relationships with and service for customers, the ability to develop new products and services and a reduction in costs, to name but a few.

“Kx has over 20 years’ experience in financial markets, capturing, crunching and analysing massive quantities of data, at record speeds. We are now making our technology available to the IoT market, where there is an urgent need for such tools. Our high-performance database and time-series analytics facilitate exceptionally fast processing of sensor data, delivering knowledge, i.e. actionable information, in real-time.”

Tomczak will talk about an IoT use case involving millions of sensors and over 300 billion sensor measurements on 2 June at CommunicAsia2016.

Hashtag: #CommunicAsia2016

HP's new mobile computing products bridge work and life

HP has unveiled its latest computing innovations to transform the mobile computing experience. The new lineup addresses customers’ needs for devices that take them through 'One Life', what HP calls the seamless convergence of work and life. Workplaces are no longer confined spaces but anywhere with an Internet connection, and workstyles involve more collaboration than ever before, the company observes.

“Millennials want the device they use to be stylish and stunning, and which gives them the freedom to create and express their aspirations. If they use the device for work, they also want to be sure that it is secure enough and lets them collaborate effortlessly,” said Lionel Chng, Managing Director, HP Inc. Singapore. “At HP, we are constantly pushing the envelope in design, productivity, security and entertainment to build innovative products for ‘One Life’, so our customers get an enhanced computing experience whether for work or play.”

The new products include: 

The Spectre is immensely thin - so thin HP had to redesign a battery that is in two pieces.

 HP Spectre - Crafted in a high gloss copper-accented CNC* machined aluminum chassis, the HP Spectre is also the world’s thinnest laptop¹ – as thin as an AAA battery – but with full performance and up to nine-and-a-half hours of battery life. 

 HP EliteBook Folio - commercial-grade performance in a premium consumer notebook design. The thinnest and lightest business-class notebook HP has ever created, at only 12.4 mm and under 1 kg, the military-standard certified EliteBook Folio does not compromise on business-critical robustness, security and manageability while bringing consumer style to the office.

The Windows 10-based Elite x3 is smartphone sized but delivers desktop productivity when connected to a separate display.

The Elite x3 comes with a desktop dock and a laptop dock and can deliver a phablet, laptop and desktop experience.

 HP Elite x3 - the first built-for-business mobile device running Windows 10 that revolutionises the mobile computing experience. The HP Elite x3 bridges phablet, laptop and desktop use cases from a single computing device.

Rounding up HP’s new premium PC portfolio are:  

 The thinnest 14” business-class notebook² - the HP EliteBook 1040 G3 – and the new HP EliteBook 800 G3 series – the next generation of HP’s best-selling business-class notebooks. 

 The HP EliteBook 1030 - Sitting right between the EliteBook Folio and EliteBook 1040 in HP’s premium business-class portfolio, the device is designed for users who require the versatility and mobility of a smaller notebook but would like a larger screen.

1 Based on HP's internal analysis as of 2/10/16 of vendors shipping >1 million units worldwide annually with clamshell design, Windows or OSX, measured at z-height. 

2 Based on HP’s internal analysis of 14” business class notebooks as of January 4, 2016 with >1 million unit annual sales having preinstalled encryption, authentication, malware protection and BIOS-level protection, passing MIL-STD 810G tests with optional docking incorporating power delivery. 

*CNC stands for computer numerical control and refers to machines for manufacturing which are controlled by computers.

Epson's Moverio Pro BT-2000 smart headset is here

Epson, a global projection technology and visual communications provider, has launched the Moverio Pro BT-2000 smart headset. The Moverio Pro delivers a binocular smart glasses experience for augmented reality applications such as inspection or training purposes, or for remote field service support for complex repair assistance and troubleshooting.

Source: Epson Singapore. The new
Moverio Pro BT-2000 smart headset.

Augmented reality smart glasses can improve worker efficiency for various industries in vertical markets such as warehouse/logistics, field service, automotive, manufacturing, construction, and retail. Workers in different locations can see exactly what their counterparts are seeing, get visual assistance and to provide informed support and training, for instance.

Leveraging Epson’s patented optical and precision technologies, the Moverio Pro BT-2000 provides a platform for displaying augmented reality content over the real world environment and 3D images. The Moverio Pro features a 1,350 Candela/mm²* high-resolution display and micro projectors located on each side of the eyeglasses that project transparent overlays of digital content directly in the user’s field of view over the real-world environment. An ambient light sensor (ALS) automatically adjusts the display brightness for each location at work.

The headset also includes a highly sensitive motion sensor unit, the Epson inertial measurement unit (IMU), consisting of high-precision motion sensors such as a gyroscope, accelerometer and magnetometer for accurate head tracking or indoor positioning. A 5-megapixel stereo camera with three-dimensional depth sensing detects the dimensions and spatial positioning of objects in relation to each other.

Designed with an Android operating system, the new Moverio Pro enables enterprises and other organisations to create and share applications that tailor the product to meet their precise needs. The new product also provides Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for connectivity with external interface devices such as keyboards, mouses and headsets, voice interpretation and recognition for easier hand-free operation, and two exchangeable batteries that allow work to continue with minimal interruption and downtime. The BT-2000 is also dust and water resistant for durability.

“The Moverio Pro BT-2000 is a result of our discussions with customers in different industries who see the tremendous potential of Moverio smart glasses that can help enhance productivity of their businesses. The Moverio has the potential to revolutionise workflow for onsite or remote operations. It adds a new dimension to professionals for improving their efficiency and accuracy at work, enabling workers to share their experience virtually or provide hands-free movement for hands-on work,” said Tan May Lin, Epson Singapore’s General Manager (Sales, Marketing & Customer Service Division).

Interested?

The Moverio Pro BT-2000 retails at S$4,857 and is currently available in Singapore, Thailand and Philippines.

*Cd/m² is a unit measuring luminance, or brightness.

posted from Bloggeroid

Nestlé forges partnerships with startups through global innovation platform

Nestlé is to build new partnerships with startups by launching a new global open innovation platform called Henri@Nestlé.

The platform will expand Nestlé’s on-going activities in working with startups by building on the Silicon Valley Innovation Outpost, launched in 2013. It will help create a more effective approach to innovation, working with technology partners and early stage entrepreneurs.

Henri@Nestlé will provide an online mechanism for startups to partner with Nestlé and gain access to its geographic reach and extensive brand portfolio. Startups can submit ideas to the site, which will provide an ongoing series of business challenges on themes from digital services and sustainability to creative content and product innovation among others.

Successful applicants will receive funding and the chance to partner, pilot and scale up their solution with Nestlé.

Interested?

Henri@Nestlé is due to launch at the end of June.

posted from Bloggeroid

KKBOX launches Chinese music campaign on Twitter

Source: Twitter. Screenshot of Tia Ray's tweet.

Twitter and KKBOX, the Asian music streaming brand, are working to expand the appreciation of Chinese pop music, or Cpop (#Cpop), to a global audience.

KKBOX is creating #OnlyOnTwitter Cpop content on their official Twitter account (@KKBOX), including weekly live Twitter Q&A interviews with Cpop artists, autographed video clips from Cpop musicians and producers using Twitter's Challenger app, regular #KKvote contests to engage overseas Cpop fans, and live broadcasting of Cpop concerts and the annual KKBOX music awards via Periscope (@KKBOXTW) to the world.

With the #LoveCpop campaign from now, Cpop artists are showing support to KKBOX to bring Chinese-language music to the world. An increasing number of Cpop artists such as Jam Hsiao (@JamHsiao0330), Z-Chen (@zchen0508), May Day (@Mayday_EN), IO Band (@ioband), Tia Ray (@tiaraymusic), Vanness Wu (@VanNessVanWu), Stefanie Sun (@Stefsunyanzi), Kelly Lin (@kellyhlin), JJ Lin (@JJ_Lin), GEM (@GEMoving), Shung Xiao Yu (@ShungXiaoyu), Coco Lee (@cocolee117), and Erika Liu (@ErikaLiu0314) are already on Twitter to amplify their music to the world.

Catherine Chien, Marketing VP of KKBOX, said: "KKBOX offers the most comprehensive Asia-pop music library. This year, KKBOX's tracks have grown from 20 million to 25 million. Also, over 2,500 artists and celebrities are longtime supporters of KKBOX. With Twitter as our social media partner, we will co-create exclusive content on Twitter for Cpop fans and artists to share their music appreciation with the world through the live communications platform."

Margot Ling, Head of Media Partnerships of Twitter Greater China, said: "We want to bring more Chinese-language content to Twitter to make our global communications platform the live connection to Chinese culture for our users around the world. Music is something that everyone can appreciate and our KKBOX collaboration is a new and exciting way to promote Cpop to the world through real-time interactions and live conversations on our platform.

"We're thrilled that KKBOX, one of Asia's top music streaming service platforms, will regularly create unique Twitter content with established and emerging Cpop artists, as well as during music concerts and award shows."

Interested?

Follow @KKBOX on Twitter and @KKBOXTW on Periscope to enjoy the livecast behind-the-scenes action and song highlights of all Cpop concerts hosted by KKBOX in Taipei and Hong Kong this year.

Singapore's IP-Tribe selects the Radisys MediaEngine for customers' transcoding needs

Radisys, the services acceleration company, has announced that telecom systems integrator IP-Tribe has selected Radisys’ MediaEngine to deliver next-generation transcoding solutions to its mobile operator customers in Southeast Asia.

IP-Tribe, headquartered in Singapore, is a system integrator partner of regional Tier-1 telecom service providers in South East Asia. Radisys’ MediaEngine is being deployed and integrated by IP-Tribe into a leading Southeast Asian mobile operator’s network to support transcoding for rich communication services (RCS) and other next-generation services.

“We earned our reputation as a leading systems integrator in Southeast Asia through the selection and deployment of telecom network solutions that best address the service delivery challenges of our mobile operator customers,” said Ang Aik Hong, CEO, IP-Tribe. “We chose Radisys’ market-leading MediaEngine portfolio as it offers the scalable transcoding essential to deliver seamless interoperability between legacy and next-gen services, across all of the endpoint devices in the network.”

Traditionally, transcoding has been integrated in media gateways and session border controllers. However the transcoding requirements of advanced HD audio and video codecs are overwhelming the capabilities of legacy equipment. The increasing deployment of advanced codecs used in new services offerings, such as VoLTE, VoWiFi and WebRTC, calls for a new approach to ensure interoperability between contemporary and legacy endpoints and handsets. An adjunct transcoding architecture such as the Radisys MediaEngine adjunct transcoding solution enables mobile operators to more flexibly and cost-effectively support HD audio and conversational video services using the latest advanced codecs and to prepare for the virtualisation of their session border controllers (SBCs). 

Said Grant Henderson, VP, MediaEngine and Corporate Marketing, Radisys: “Our proven ability to complement legacy gateway and SBC infrastructure with powerful audio and video transcoding capabilities offers our customers a future-proof approach to scale and generate revenues from next-generation service offerings, while maintaining interoperability with legacy mobile devices and endpoints. IP-Tribe’s regional relationships with Southeast Asian mobile operators and strong integration skillsets facilitated a seamless deployment.”

MediaEngine will transcode a wide range of standards, such as WebRTC endpoints using VP8 (video) and OPUS (audio), with SIP endpoints H.264 (video) and G.711/G.729/G.722 (voice) codecs; G.711 audio in a VoIP service provider network to G.729 or G.722 HD audio deployed in the enterprise; and from VoLTE terminals using the AMR-WB codec, with 3G handsets using AMR-NB codec and other legacy mobile handsets/codecs.

Hashtag: #CommunicAsia2016

Etihad Airways leverages VR in film starring Nicole Kidman, A380

Source: Etihad website. Kidman in the video.

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has turned to virtual reality (VR) to show off its A380 services. The film, starring Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman, is the first time that a Hollywood actor has ever starred in a fully immersive virtual reality movie.

The five-minute interactive 360^o  feature, titled Reimagine, immerses viewers in an experiential journey following Kidman through one of its new Airbus A380s flying between New York and Abu Dhabi. The airline has used cutting-edge technology and multidisciplinary mediums in the feature to bring to life its acclaimed guest experience and hospitality story by engaging the consumer in various sensory interactions onboard the virtual flight. Each scene in the film takes on a theme intended to stimulate the senses of light, sound, motion, and conversation.

Kidman, who is also Etihad Airways’ brand ambassador, said: “The film is a culmination of Etihad’s vision to tell the airline’s story in an extremely innovative way and a commitment to engaging with the public as has never been attempted by an airline before. It was a great challenge but one which has definitely paid off and it was great to be part of such an exciting project.”

Throughout the experience, the viewer meets and engages with a number of characters including the actress herself, her film director, an opera singer and even an Emirati guest with a falcon in First Class. The journey also provides personal interactions with the Savoy-trained Butler in The Residence, the airline’s luxurious private three room cabin, the in-flight Chef in First Class, the Food and Beverage Manager in Business Class, and the Flying Nanny, trained by the Norland College in the UK.

Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “We want to share Etihad’s story in a completely new way, using technology to make our consumers a part of the narrative and to experience an Etihad Airways A380 flight first-hand, from anywhere.

“The film demonstrates how, as an innovative brand, we continue to break down the barriers of convention and lead the way in intelligent communication and best practice not just within the aviation industry, but across the fields of marketing, communication and technology.”

The adventure takes the viewer through the twin-decked aircraft and covers its luxurious interiors including Economy Class, Business Class, and First Class, before concluding with a focus on Kidman enjoying The Residence.

Shane O’Hare, Etihad Airways’ Senior Vice President Marketing, said: “In December 2014 we completely reimagined the travel experience with the launch of our new A380 fleet, setting a new standard in innovative design, service and technology. This was followed in 2015 by a tremendously successful adverting campaign starring Nicole Kidman.

“This immersive VR film is a massive step-change in the way we present the Etihad Airways brand and product to the consumer using highly innovative new mediums. Based on the success of our recent campaign with Nicole, the decision to take this partnership to the next level was an obvious one.”

The film, which took more than six months to produce, was filmed exclusively in Abu Dhabi. An Etihad Airways A380 was used for three days and fully customised prior to filming; overhead lockers, seats and other sections of the aircraft’s interior were removed to allow for the installation of Red Dragon cameras, which were used to perfectly capture the actress’ movement through the aircraft. Hundreds of individual lights were required to ensure smooth and uninterrupted shots.

Etihad Airways collaborated with the Barbarian Group, a subsidiary of Cheil Worldwide, and the creative digital production company MediaMonks to produce the film. Ola Björling, MediaMonks’ Global Director of VR, said: “As the most multidisciplinary medium there is, virtual reality relies more heavily on craft and execution than anything that has gone before it. We believe the display of artistry in every facet of this production is setting a new benchmark for live-action VR.”

Interested?

Watch Reimagine. An updated version in stereoscopic sound will be released on 17 June. To guarantee the full experience, download the Oculus VR app and view the film using a VR headset, such as Oculus Rift or Google Cardboard.

Watch the Making of Reimagine

EMC lauds APJ partners for 2015

EMC honoured its business partners at the recent EMC World Global Partner Summit which was held as part of EMC World in the US earlier this month. The EMC Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) Business Partner Awards 2015 recognises partners in APJ for their commitment to EMC as well as their proven ability to help organisations modernise their data centre as they realise their digital transformation journey.

“The winners of Business Partner Program Awards 2015 have achieved exceptional outcomes in Asia Pacific and Japan,” said David Webster, President, Asia Pacific and Japan for EMC. “With EMC Asia Pacific and Japan Business Partner Awards 2015, we wanted to recognise the success and achievements of our channel partners in improving customers’ businesses and modernising their data centres.”

This year, more than 200 EMC channel and alliance partners from across Asia Pacific and Japan attended the Global Partner Summit at EMC World.
The winners are:

Asia Pacific and Japan Alliance Growth Partner of the Year 2015 - Atos

Asia Pacific and Japan Alliance Partner of the Year 2015 - HCL Technologies

Asia Pacific and Japan Cloud Service Provider Growth Partner of the Year 2015 - Dimension Data (Asia Pacific)

Asia Pacific and Japan Cloud Service Provider Partner of the Year 2015 - Telstra

Asia Pacific and Japan Converged Infrastructure Partner of the Year 2015 - Dimension Data (Australia)

Asia Pacific and Japan Data Protection Partner of the Year 2015 and Asia Pacific and Japan Solution Provider Partner of the Year 2015 - NOX

Asia Pacific and Japan Deal of the Year 2015 - Ingram Micro India

Asia Pacific and Japan Distributor of the Year 2015 - ECS Singapore

Asia Pacific and Japan Isilon Partner of the Year 2015 - NEC Japan

Asia Pacific and Japan New Solution Provider Partner of the Year 2015 - Sempre Technologies NZ

Asia Pacific and Japan Services Partner of the Year 2015 - Data #3

Asia Pacific and Japan Value Added Distributor of the Year 2015 - Digital China

Asia Pacific and Japan Virtustream Partner of the Year 2015 - CTC

Asia Pacific and Japan VMAX Partner of the Year 2015 - LG N-Sys Korea

Asia Pacific and Japan VNX Partner of the Year 2015 - Dimension Data (Asia Pacific)

Asia Pacific and Japan XtremIO Partner of the Year 2015 - Infront Systems

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Sonus supports Event Zero's UC Commander

· Enterprises can now use Event Zero’s UC Commander management and analytics tools with the SBC 1000 or SBC 2000.

· The UC Commander allows enterprises to identify and correct network issues in unified communications (UC) environments at the branch office level.

· The ability to run UC Commander from the SBC 1000 or SBC 2000 enables enterprises to gather actionable, real-time data on its survivable branch appliances’ (SBAs) performance.

Sonus Networks, a cloud communications provider, has announced that Event Zero’s UC Commander, the same technology assets acquired by Microsoft, can be deployed on Sonus’ SBC 1000 and SBC 2000 session border controllers (SBCs). With this solution, enterprises can review real-time analytics on the SBC 1000 and SBC 2000 SBA to ensure high availability and optimal performance in a premise-based UC environment.

Event Zero’s solutions are one of only several partner solutions certified by Microsoft to analyse and improve the quality of Skype for Business communications through IT Pro Tools. Event Zero’s UC Commander identifies network issues that can impact call quality, such as hardware failure, CPU/memory overloads, congestion, delays and dropped calls. Running UC Commander supporting features from the SBC 1000 or SBC 2000 will help enable enterprises to gather actionable, real-time data on survivable branch appliance (SBA) performance and provide enterprises with the capacity to take corrective action to ensure its Microsoft-based communications run optimally.

“Enterprises demand consistent call quality from Microsoft Skype for Business,” said Cary Hayward, Sonus Senior Director, Product Management. “The combination of the SBC 1000 and SBC 2000 with the UC Commander gives customers a higher level of assurance that their Skype for Business environments will function seamlessly throughout their various branch locations.”

“Enterprises choose the Sonus SBC 1000 and SBC 2000 for their renowned reliability and simple management,” said Ken Lasko, vice president, Service Delivery at Event Zero. “By adding UC Commander to Sonus’ platforms, enterprises can take advantage of class-leading analytics with simple access to data that IT professionals demand when running a Skype for Business deployment.”

In April Sonus announced support for Skype for Business Cloud Connector Edition with Sonus Cloud Link, an intelligent, scalable, vendor-agnostic solution enabling secure enterprise migration to Cloud PBX in Office 365. Sonus Cloud Link also supports Skype for Business hybrid Cloud deployments.

Microsoft’s Cloud Connector Edition is a hybrid offering consisting of a set of packaged virtual machines that implement on-premises public switch telephone network (PSTN) connectivity with Cloud PBX in Office 365. By deploying a minimal Skype for Business server topology in a virtualised environment, cloud and on-premises users can send and receive calls with other endpoints through existing on-premises voice infrastructure.

Sonus Cloud Link integrates the Cloud Connector Edition application into a single communications appliance that reduces enterprise server capital expenditure costs, while speeding time-to-market of Cloud PBX services. Sonus Cloud Link also preserves existing PSTN connectivity, supports analogue devices and provides enterprise-wide legacy dial plan and active directory dial plan integration to help customers migrate to Cloud PBX in Office 365 at their own pace. Powered by Sonus SBCs, Sonus Cloud Link delivers features to prevent unauthorised access and preserve communications through hacker attacks.

“Sonus continues to provide enterprise customers with secure solutions that work seamlessly across the evolving Skype for Business platform,” said Giovanni Mezgec, General Manager, Office 365 Partner Marketing at Microsoft.

“A quarter of all organisations use cloud telephony,” noted John Burke, Principal Research Analyst and CIO at Nemertes Research at the time. “Among those holding off running telephony and other unified communications apps in the cloud, 61% cite security as the major impediment to deployment, up from just 28% the year prior. Solutions like this strike at the heart of IT’s concerns and should increase the number, reach, and speed of deployments.”

“From Lync to Skype for Business to Cloud PBX and Cloud Connector Edition, Sonus has experience supporting Microsoft’s advanced communications offerings,” said Mykola Konrad, Sonus VP, Product Management and Marketing. “Sonus Cloud Link now offers a simple way for companies to move to Microsoft Cloud PBX in Office 365, while securely providing PSTN access.”

Interested?

Download Skype for Business for Dummies and other for Dummies e-books

Myanmar adopts Intelsat satellite services to advance 2G, 3G wireless communications

Intelsat, the operator of the world’s first globalised network, powered by its satellite backbone, has announced that the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) of Myanmar will use services on two Intelsat satellites to advance the deployment of the country’s wireless communications infrastructure and expand broadband access for businesses.

The multi-year, multi-transponder agreement awarded under the authority of the MOTC will allow the government of Myanmar to enhance its network as well as other mobile operators’ networks. “Over the past few years, Myanmar has made significant strides in expanding access to faster and more reliable broadband connectivity throughout the country,” said Khin Maung Thet, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transport and Communications. “With the help of Intelsat’s Globalized Network, we will leverage their satellite solutions to extend 2G and 3G communications services beyond urban centers and ensure that all of our citizens have access to higher bandwidth, superior quality and more affordable mobile broadband connectivity. Today’s announcement further underscores our commitment to building a more digitally inclusive society.”

MOTC will use C-band satellite services on Intelsat 902 located at 62° East, and Ku-band services on Intelsat 906 located at 64° East for VSAT network and cellular backhaul services. By 2018, MOTC will move to the new, high power services on the recently announced Intelsat 39 satellite, the replacement spacecraft at the 62E orbital location. By integrating satellite solutions into its own mobile networks, MOTC will be able to dramatically increase overall network bandwidth and reliability as it expands 2G and 3G services into the more remote areas of Myanmar.

“Access to affordable broadband connectivity is essential to the exchange of data and ideas that support economic growth of individuals, communities and countries, and it is rewarding to be part of such an important project in Myanmar”, said Stephen Spengler, Chief Executive Officer, Intelsat. “Our services will help enrich the lives of the communities it serves by improving medical and educational access, providing a lifeline during times of crisis and enabling Myanmar to foster strong relationships within and outside of the country.”

New HP printers and PCs make life better for everyone, everywhere

Chng speaks to celebrity Irene Ang about his life, the new HP, and how HP is making PC and printer experiences better.

HP Inc. is both "46 years young" and just months old in Singapore, a curious paradox that occurs because HP has been in Singapore since 1970, but split into two companies in October last year. While HP Enterprise handles the former HP's servers, software, storage, networking and associated services, HP Inc. looks after printers and PCs, a new wave of which has just been introduced.

Lionel Chng, MD, Singapore, HP Inc., notes that the company has global, regional, and local functions in Singapore, with a significant amount of manufacturing and design occurring in the country. "This small little red dot 'really can' (do it)," Chng said of Singapore, which is also known as the 'little red dot'. He shared that the graphics solutions business produces a wide spectrum of printers in Singapore "for the world", and introduced a creative new print head "made in Singapore for Singapore and the rest of the world."

"Not many manufacturers can claim we produce for Singapore and the rest of the world," Chng said.

Chng talks about a designed-in-Singapore page print head.

Chng also featured a page print head that is designed in Singapore. The print head has 42,000 nozzles that spray tiny dots onto a moving sheet of paper, as opposed to the traditional way of printing, where the print head moves over the paper. The new technique results in fewer mechanical failures, printing at half the cost but twice the speed.

"It all starts with the overall HP – make life better for everyone everywhere," he said. "We ultimately want to engineer experiences that amaze." Chng gave the examples of how HP has reengineered the entire PC experience with colourful, connected mobile products for millennials - which comprise more than 30% of the workforce in Asia Pacific and Japan - and migrated PC security features into printers against a backdrop of security attacks that are up 21%.

Chng also disclosed that HP will move next year to a new campus comprising two 10-storey buildings. The new campus will house the manufacturing, R&D and centre of excellence facilities.

HP Pavilion PCs feature power, productivity and affordability

 The HP Pavilion x360 is offered in two colours with a new digital thread design on the keyboard deck
 The HP Pavilion features discrete graphics, two new colours, and the iconic digital thread design.

Source: HP. The HP Pavilion 14" laptop in Modern Gold.

HP has unveiled a new Pavilion PC portfolio featuring new convertibles and notebooks with sleek designs and more power. Targeted at students, millennials and families, the new portfolio lets customers reflect their sense of style at a price that delivers value.

“Some customers want thin and light PCs for on the go while other customers want power and performance to create and store,” said Lionel Chng, Managing Director, HP Inc. Singapore. “HP’s redesigned Pavilion PCs offer affordability and a variety of options for customers to get the functionality they need in a PC packed with style and personality.”

The new HP Pavilion PCs are some of the lightest mainstream laptops in the market. They feature updated designs with more colour options. Audio custom-tuned by experts at B&O PLAY and vibrant displays, including Full HD¹ IPS options, provide an immersive computing experience. The new lineup also features the latest Intel processors and graphics.

To meet customers’ increased desire for more mobile solutions, the HP Pavilion convertible and notebook PCs are thinner and lighter than the previous generation. They feature Prismatic Lithium ion battery cells to maintain long battery life and offers HP Fast Charge², which can charge the PC up to 90% in 90 minutes when powered off.

On-the-go entertainment

For 2016, HP redesigned the HP Pavilion x360s to be sleek with audio custom-tuned by experts at B&O PLAY. The 13.3” diagonal HP Pavilion x360 is thinner and lighter compared to the previous generation with starting weight at 1.58 kg³ and profile of 19.8mm in height. This year’s models feature a new digital thread pattern on the keyboard deck in a pearl shade.

Style and power

The new portfolio of Pavilion notebooks include 14” and 15.6” diagonal Pavilion notebooks that are 11% to 22% thinner and lighter with a smaller footprint compared to the previous generation. The starting weight is 1.5 kg³ and 1.93 kg³ with thin profiles at 19.5mm and 22.5mm, for the 14” and 15.6” diagonal versions respectively. The new designs are offered in a variety of colour options including Natural Silver and Modern Gold with the new threaded design element on the keyboard and speakers.

Interested?⁴

 The 13.3” diagonal HP Pavilion x360 is expected to be available in Singapore from June with a starting price at S$1,199.
 The 14” diagonal HP Pavilion is expected to be available in Singapore from June with a starting price at S$1,299.
 The 15.6” diagonal HP Pavilion is expected to be available in Singapore from June with a starting price at S$1,299.

1 High-definition (HD) content required to view HD images; full high-definition (FHD) content required to view FHD images.
2 Recharges your battery up to 90% within 90 minutes when the system is off (using the “shut down” command). Recommended for use with the HP adapter provided with the notebook, not recommended with a smaller capacity battery charger. After charging has reached 90% capacity, charging speed will return to normal speed.
3 Weight will vary by configuration.
4 Estimated street prices. Actual prices may vary.

China Pharmaceutical University virtualises data centre with Brocade

China Pharmaceutical University (CPU) has consolidated multiple server farms into a single cloud data centre supported by a New IP networking solution from Brocade. The new data centre will enable the university—which is among China’s elite 211 Project educational institutions—to strengthen its pharmacological research and accelerate application delivery while reducing operating costs.

Like many universities and colleges in China, much of CPU’s server infrastructure has been autonomously deployed by individual academic departments, leaving the university’s relatively underdeveloped central IT facilities to support administrative functions. Going forward, however, CPU is using data centre virtualisation to provide a more efficient, flexible, and powerful infrastructure that supports all academic and administrative requirements.

“It no longer makes sense to have decentralised server and data storage facilities—with all the duplication and limitations—especially as computer modelling has become such an important technique in pharmacological research,” said Yuan Quan, Deputy Director of the information technology centre at CPU. “The New IP networking solution from Brocade provides the virtual network foundation for our new cloud data centre operations, enabling us to efficiently manage our resources as a single pool and easily scale without increasing operating costs. When it came to making the network choice, Brocade’s proposal was clearly superior in terms of value, performance, and capabilities—with a strong software-defined networking (SDN) roadmap.”

CPU is leveraging Brocade VCS Fabric technology within the data centre to establish a seamless and highly automated Ethernet fabric, fully integrated with its virtualised server and storage infrastructure, while using network functions virtualisation (NFV) to support virtual machine (VM) security and load balancing. As a result—and compared to operating its previous, decentralised server farms—the university has been able to slash operating costs while providing a far more capable platform to power its academic and administrative applications.

“Deployment of a New IP network infrastructure has been a critical element in CPU rapidly achieving its vision of a cloud data centre,” said Eric Yu, Vice President of Greater China, Brocade. “In doing so, it has taken a massive stride to the forefront of universities in China that are leveraging cloud technologies to improve learning systems, accelerate research, and enhance institutional development. CPU is already enjoying a strong return on investment, and this will increase with the level of data centre automation as it leverages software-defined networking.”

Brocade VDX 8770 and VDX 6740 switches deployed by CPU form the nodes of the “spine and leaf” Ethernet fabric that efficiently delivers wire-speed 10 Gigabit ports with low-latency port-to-port performance that is ideal for cloud computing operations. The self-forming, self-healing fabric is VM-aware and supports automated VM mobility between hypervisor hosts. The Brocade VDX switches also provide a Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) gateway, enabling VM hosts to access the university’s EMC VPLEX virtual storage cluster without the need for SAN interfaces.

The Brocade vRouter has been deployed within the data centre to provide VM security while the Brocade Virtual ADX application delivery controller handles server load balancing and security at the application level. Both these Brocade NFV software offerings run on the same standardised virtual server infrastructure as CPU’s applications, enabling the university to scale capacity quickly and easily, as required.

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