UK Computational Science Research Boosts Performance and Scalability with Itanium 2-Based SGI Supercluster Running Linux OS



SGI today announced a contract for one of the largest SGI® Altix™ 3000 superclusters to date, powered by 256 Intel® Itanium® 2 processors. This latest addition to the SGI® line of servers and supercomputers is part of an 18-month extension to a six-year supercomputing service contract awarded in 1998 by the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) to a consortium comprising prime contractor Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), SGI and University of Manchester.



The consortium runs a service, Computer Services for Academic Research, which provides scientific computational facilities on behalf of several U.K. Research Councils, particularly EPSRC and the Natural Environment Research Council, to over 500 of the leading scientists in the U.K. This latest upgrade extends the capabilities and compute power of the service available to U.K. academia and commerce and opens up new opportunities for scientific development.



The Research Councils’ investment in high-performance compute technology enables such applications as molecular modelling for the pharmaceuticals industry and climate prediction and monitoring.



The university’s decision to purchase the Altix 3000 supercluster was based on the system’s ability to support complex data manipulation at high speed using the Intel Itanium 2 processor’s ultra high processing power, the clear price/performance benefits of the solution and the SGI and Intel product roadmaps, which provide support for the requirements of the science and research sector over the long term.



John O’Reilly, chief executive of EPSRC, commented, “The U.K. Research Councils are committed to maintaining a strong position amongst the world leaders in computational science and engineering. This initiative adds to our strategic framework for high-end computing, allowing us to enhance this reputation.”



From Professor David Price, head of the NERC Consortium on Mineral Physics, and professor of mineral physics at University College London and Birkbeck College: “This is just the sort of machine that we need to enable us to do high-performance modelling of condensed matter.”



Since its launch in January of this year, the SGI family of Itanium 2-based Altix 3000 systems has shattered scalability and performance records. “A single system of this size, using powerful Itanium 2 processors within SGI’s scalable architecture, takes the facilities at the University of Manchester to a leadership position within the computational community,” said Professor Mark Clark, director of information systems at the University of Manchester.



“The scientific research sector is investing in new 64-bit high-performance computing technology and pushing processor performance to new levels,” said John Woodget, Intel marketing director, EMEA. “Beyond pure data management, scientific research is demanding greater scalability, rapid results to complex, compute-intensive calculations and the ability to run tasks in parallel to improve speed and performance, all at an affordable cost. Our work with the University of Manchester shows how Intel’s advanced Itanium 2 processor technology is meeting the demanding HPC requirements of today’s research centres.”



Steve Coggins, senior VP, EMEA at SGI, commented, “This project cements SGI’s position as a leader in high-performance computing for the technical marketplace. We are excited to be delivering the most powerful Intel-based shared-memory system in the world to the University of Manchester.”



The scientific computational service’s new Altix 3000 system is a four-node supercluster featuring 64 processors per node. The service’s infrastructure already includes a 512-processor SGI® Origin® 3000 server supported by a storage area network, providing high-performance access to large quantities of data.



The consortium approach benefits from the skills of each party. SGI Managed Services provides product-focused services that accelerate productivity and optimise system performance. CSC provides integration and operational management of the multiple systems. “The renewal of this contract confirms that we are delivering value for money in providing this key national service for the U.K. Research Councils,” explained John Rawlins, director of high-performance computing at CSC. “It will also enable CSC to substantially expand the utility computing capabilities in its http://www.e-HPC.com service for usage by commercial and industrial clients over the Internet.”



For further details about SGI’s involvement with universities and research labs around the world, visit http://www.sgi.com/go/research, and for information about the SGI Altix family of superclusters, visit http://www.sgi.com/servers/altix/.



This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding financial and contractual commitments that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such statements. The reader is cautioned not to rely unduly on these forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of future or current performance. Such risks and uncertainties include long-term program commitments, the performance of third parties, the sustained performance of current and future products, financing risks, the ability to integrate and support a complex technology solution involving multiple providers and users, and other risks detailed from time to time in the company’s most recent SEC reports, including its reports on From 10-K and Form 10-Q.



About SGI

SGI, also known as Silicon Graphics, Inc., is the world’s leader in high-performance computing, visualisation and the management of complex data. SGI’s vision is to provide technology that enables the most significant scientific and creative breakthroughs of the 21st century. Whether it’s sharing images to aid in brain surgery, finding oil more efficiently, studying global climate or enabling the transition from analog to digital broadcasting, SGI is dedicated to addressing the next class of challenges for scientific, engineering and creative users. SGI was named on FORTUNE magazine’s 2003 list of “Top 100 Companies to Work For.” With offices worldwide, the company is headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., and can be found on the Web at http://www.sgi.com.



About CSC

Founded in 1959, Computer Sciences Corporation is one of the world’s leading information technology (IT) services companies. CSC’s mission is to provide customers in industry and government with solutions crafted to meet their specific challenges and enable them to profit from the advanced use of technology. With approximately 90,000 employees, including more than 26,000 from the company’s March 7, 2003, acquisition of DynCorp, CSC provides innovative solutions for customers around the world by applying leading technologies and CSC’s own advanced capabilities. These include systems design and integration; IT and business process outsourcing; applications software development; Web and application hosting; and management consulting. Headquartered in El Segundo, Calif., CSC reported revenue of $11.3 billion for the 12 months ended Dec. 27, 2002. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at http://www.csc.com.





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