STORAGE

Engenio Information Technologies today announced that it has committed funding to support the Information Storage Industry Center (ISIC) Research Affiliate Program at the University of California, San Diego. The program promotes direct relationships between the ISIC and data storage industry leaders, while creating a framework to pursue research projects of mutual interest. Established in 1998, the ISIC's mission is to study the business dynamics of the data storage industry and related topics such as storage complexity, interoperability, standards, industry outsourcing and potential threats to the industry. Studies, which are collaborations between business leaders and scholars, are released by the ISIC into the public domain for the benefit of data storage solution vendors and customers. "The storage industry has become a very dynamic market sector with the introduction of storage networking," said Stan Skelton, Engenio Senior Director of Strategic Planning. "We believe that the best vendor is one who masters both the technology as well as the business dimensions. The work of ISIC offers further insight into the financial and economic dimensions of this fast moving industry providing us with the foundation for development of superior business models. This research fulfills a large need for our industry and it is our privilege to support it." The ISIC is one of 22 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Industry Centers at 15 universities across the U.S. "The ISIC Industry Affiliate Program conducts research projects that add tremendous value to both storage vendors and their customers," said Ron Durbin, ISIC Industry Relations Director. "The issues in the data storage industry are complex and the impact of decisions can affect a company or organization for many years. The ISIC is able to provide a non-partisan point-of-view to help organizations increase productivity, decrease costs and remain competitive in the global economy."