SCIENCE

IBM has launched a first-of-its-kind Cloud Computing Lab in the United Kingdom to help partners capture cloud computing business opportunities.  The new lab will help IBM Business Partners cloud enable their technologies and gain the sales and marketing skills they need to take advantage of this fast-growing market.

In a recent IBM developerWorks survey of 2,000 IT professionals from 87 countries, 91 percent of respondents said they anticipate cloud computing to overtake on-premise computing as the primary way organizations acquire IT by 2015.  Industry analysts also are predicting significant growth for cloud computing services, estimating that this year's $68 billion opportunity will reach nearly $150 billion in four years.

Partners at the new Cloud Computing Lab in the Hursley IBM Innovation Center can access the latest in IBM cloud technologies to develop and test new cloud services, and work with industry experts to build a go-to-market plan. A typical project at the lab will help a partner explore a wide variety of cloud computing models and become cloud builders, application, technology and infrastructure providers, and cloud resellers and aggregators, depending on their individual business.

Unlike IBM's competitors who ask their partners to do the heavy lifting in cloud enabling their technology -- then come up with a business plan to sell it -- IBM works directly with its partners on these crucial steps to help ensure joint success in the marketplace.

For example, IBM Business Partner Maxima, a leading IT business systems and managed services company based in the UK, recently signed an agreement and developed a go-to-market plan with IBM to deliver cloud based services to its 1,400 mid-market customers across the US, Europe and Asia, including 500 of its own resellers.  Maxima will deliver business applications hosted on an IBM cloud to its clients in the construction, manufacturing and distribution, financial services, telecommunications, and public sector industries.  The company will market cloud services through its Maxima Reseller Portal, allowing customers and resellers to use and market business applications using the portal.

"Businesses are looking for reliable performance and security in cloud services," said Graham Kingsmill, CEO, Maxima. "The combination of Maxima and IBM cloud services addresses these issues and can help our joint clients and resellers grow their business and reach new markets."

Experts from IBM's Cast Iron development team will be on-hand at the lab to help partners connect on-premise and cloud computing environments for clients in the finance, healthcare, telecommunications and energy and utilities industries.  IBM acquired Cast Iron earlier this year for its expertise as a leading integration-as-a-service company.

Partners can access the lab from any of IBM's network of 38 Innovation Centers worldwide. As a result, partners at these centers can work virtually with the cloud experts at the Hursley IBM Innovation Center to enable their technologies and gain the skills they need to build and deliver new cloud services.

"Our business partners are ready to cash-in on cloud computing, and they are looking to IBM for hands-on assistance to drive new business opportunities," said Jim Corgel, general manager, IBM ISV and Developer Relations. "The new Cloud Computing Lab will help our partners gain the skills they need to build next generation business applications and services for the cloud using IBM technologies."