ACADEMIA

Univa Corporation, the leading provider of Globus software, said it was awarded the CityLIGHTS Newcomer Award by the Illinois Information Technology Association (ITA). The award recognizes Univa for having the strongest potential of any Illinois start-up to grow into a solid presence in the technology marketplace. Now in its seventh year, CityLIGHTS recognizes leading technology companies and individuals in the community whose innovation and success are driving change in Illinois. The Newcomer Award winner must have exhibited early inroads in developing a sustainable business model. Univa's success to date is highlighted by milestones including raising $8 million in institutional funding, completing development on its first commercial product and striking a strategic licensing agreement and partnership with IBM. "The challenge of managing the information explosion occurring in global organizations becomes more complex by the day," said Fred Hoch, ITA president. "The technology Univa has developed makes Grid computing an enabler of real business solutions for enterprises. Univa is at the forefront of what may be the next great opportunity in information technology." According to Insight Research Corporation, the worldwide market for Grid technology and services will grow to $5 billion in 2008. Univa is positioned at the center of this growth with solutions that streamline core business processes such as product design, enabling companies to accelerate time to market and revenues. Univa's products are underpinned by Grid infrastructure technology proven in over 1,000 installations around the world. Globus software has been guided from its outset by Univa's founders, Steve Tuecke, Dr. Ian Foster and Dr. Carl Kesselman, as well as researchers and technologists from the University of Chicago, Argonne Laboratories and the University of Southern California. Rich Miller joined the team in creating the company to deliver commercial products. "Univa's success demonstrates that Chicago and the Midwest are great environments for supporting and nurturing high technology businesses whose innovations are having a profound impact on global commerce," said Mike Ellis, CEO of Univa. "We are honored to be recognized as leaders by our peers in the information technology industry, and look forward to building on Univa's early successes." Univa's solutions allow businesses to streamline access to critical information and computing power across the enterprise to create an environment that maximizes collaboration. The company's products are built on open source software, an emerging model that is attracting significant attention from investors and customers.