Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Introduction
The second part of this topic has provided a general view of Grids and Clouds
and a thorough understanding of what Grid and Cloud computing are, which the
underlying architectures and business models of Grid are, which components a Grid
solution is made up of and, finally, which legal aspects are important when moving
towards Grids and Clouds.
This third part complements part two by concretizing the general Grid and
Cloud description with practical concepts, experiences and findings from the
BEinGRID project (see chapter 2). First, technical aspects and challenges of Grids
and Clouds are explained in more detail. Based on the results of a broad require-
ments analysis across all Business Experiments (BEs) involved in the BEinGRID
project, a comprehensive collection of common capabilities that exemplify required
features of Grids and Cloud solutions is provided. It is furthermore explained
how these can be used together to solve business problems. Second, this third part
provides real-world evidence of how Grid technology can be commercially applied,
and how such applications may be enhanced to benefit from new developments
and current trends such as Cloud computing. Four BEs of the BEinGRID project,
which represent promising cases and which concern solutions in different economic
sectors, are described in detail. Finally, an overview of organizational and govern-
ance challenges experienced by BEs during the implementation of Grids and Clouds
in practice is presented.
This third part of the topic is divided into six chapters. The first chapter deals
with technical features important for the commercial uptake and practical imple-
mentation of Grid and Cloud computing (chapter 8). Each of the remaining four
chapters (chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12) covers one BE and follows the same general
structure. First, each BE will be generally described, followed by a description from
the perspective of the technology provider. This includes a detailed description of
the Grid solution and its technical features as well as how it can be integrated into
companies' existing IT infrastructures. Next, the benefits for the user of the solu-
tion are described. A concluding section summarizes the findings of each BE and
provides lessons learnt. The BE's relation to Cloud computing and a potential adjust-
ment of the technical solution to benefit from current trends as Cloud computing are
discussed at the end of each chapter.
The solution covered in chapter 9 comprises a set of remote tools which use
highly accurate but computationally intense methods to help in the calculation, and
in the virtual verification of radiotherapy cancer treatment plans. This is offered as a
service to hospitals and radiotherapists. The BE covered in chapter 10 demonstrates
how Grid can be used in the crucial early design phase of a ship building process.
Shipyards and their suppliers are provided with access to external computational
resources from IT service providers, which are required to carry out the compu-
tationally intense ship design and simulations before a ship can go to production
or before the shipyard can bid on a tender. Chapter 11 covers a solution that intro-
duces Grid technology into the agricultural sector. The solution allows the composi-
tion and monitoring of dynamic supply chains in agriculture food industries using
