Networked Computing as a Utility: "European Grid Technology Days" - Brussels, 15-17 September

Brussels, 03 Aug 2004

An overview of how EU research spending is about to bring "Grid" large-scale networked computing out of research labs and into industry will be provided at the "European Grid Technology Days" 2004 in Brussels on 15-17 September.

The Grid provides easy, seamless, secure and flexible access to a range of information technology resources that are essential to a high-value, high-innovation economy. These include computing, storage, data, models and sensors.

This event, which should interest Information Technology strategists and specialists from industries that need affordable access, whether permanent or occasional, to substantial information technology resources. It includes the public launch, on 15 September, of all Grid projects co-funded under the Information Society Technologies (IST) part of the EU's 6th research Framework Programme (FP6).

One example is the industry-driven "SIMDAT" project, which deploys grids to solve complex common problems in critical EU industries such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, and aerospace. Its problem-solving aims will include:

• Pedestrian protection – enabling car bonnet subsystem designers to achieve the best trade-off between minimizing the risk of injury to pedestrians and ensuring the bonnet's mechanical stability,

• Pharmaceuticals - improving the efficiency and accuracy of pharmaceutical design, by seamlessly combining data from protein databases, positively tested candidate products, screening data and molecular information, irrespective of where the data are generated, and

• Aerospace – facilitating cross-industry, multi-disciplinary collaboration to solve complex sub-system design problems such as designing a landing system for future-concept, unmanned cargo vehicles that use airfields in noise-sensitive locations.

The public launch of FP6 Grid projects on 15 September will be followed by a two-day internal meeting with closed technical workshops for project participants on 16 and 17 September. Registration is open to all interested parties for the first day only and to FP6 and national Grid related projects for the full three days.

Agenda for "European Grid Technology Days" can be viewed online at:

Register on-line to attend the public launch of FP6 Grid projects, taking place in Brussels on 15 September 2004:

Enterprise DG
http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/ind ex_en.htm
Item source: http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/lib rary/enterprise-europe/news-updates/2004 /20040803.htm