Ministerial Visit Marks Flexiant's Pioneering Work In Cloud Computing

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND, November 23, 2011 (Press-News.org) Angela Constance MSP, Fergus Ewing (Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism) and Alyn Smith (MEP) will visit Flexiant, leading UK cloud software specialists on Monday 21 November 2011.

The ministers will tour Flexiant's headquarters and recently completed datacentre in Livingston. They will also hear more about Flexiant's important role in three EU projects, valued in total at 20 million euros.

The projects are part of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for research and technological development. FP7 bundles together all research-related EU initiatives and plays a crucial role in achieving the goals of growth, competitiveness and employment.

Flexiant launched Europe's first cloud computing platform in 2007 and remains Europe's longest standing cloud provider today. Flexiant's ground breaking technology, Extility, allows service providers and data centre operators to deliver cloud computing services to their own customers.

Appointed in 2010, following rigorous selection procedures, Flexiant's cutting edge cloud platform Extility is being used as a test bed by three pan-European FP7 projects, providing a robust proving ground for each of the projects to demonstrate the tools developed are able to run in a real public or private cloud environment. Flexiant is working in close partnership with Europe's leading experts in cloud computing brought together to deliver these high profile projects including ATOS Origin, SAP, British Telecom, Telefonica and Orange.

4CAAST, the first project will enable the transition of mobile applications to the cloud. A second project, Cumulo Nimbo, will create a pan-European cloud platform to give companies throughout the EU a competitive edge, allowing them to complete globally. The final project, Optimis, aims to create a toolkit that will break down barriers between cloud platforms and allow companies to move cloud based services easily between cloud platforms.

Alex Bligh, Flexiant's CEO says: "Today, cloud computing is critical to the evolution of the internet and the way services are delivered. We are delighted that our software is being used to help develop the tools needed for a new generation of cloud platforms. It is a privilege to work with the EU at this level beside Europe's information technology leaders."

Cloud computing refers to computers and applications that run remotely and are accessed over the internet. Businesses can use the internet to access virtual IT infrastructures running in large data centres to replace physical PCs and services. By aggregating the computing needs of many users with a single centre, hosting providers enable significant benefits to their users, such as simpler set up and maintenance, a reduction in capital expenditure, lower operating costs, infinite scalability and a greener carbon footprint.

Enterprise Minister Fergus Ewing said:

"I'm always delighted to have the opportunity to see the success of an innovative Scottish company like Flexiant. This company is clearly making its mark across Europe, broadening their reach and interacting with an impressive range of multinational partners.

"Their outward focussed approach to business is an excellent example of the type of innovation and creativity we want to encourage in companies throughout Scotland. It fits entirely with the Scottish Government's belief that ambitious companies have a significant role to play in securing our future economic success and in promoting Scottish talent across the world."

Alyn Smith, MEP comments: "It's good to see a Scottish company seizing some of the opportunities that Europe has to offer. Flexiant has shown the entrepreneurial drive and ingenuity that helps companies to succeed in today's marketplace and I'm delighted to be able to congratulate them on securing FP7 funding for three projects.


"I'll confess that the level of technological innovation on display in companies like this leaves me struggling to keep up sometimes but the confidence of the company and the belief in their potential convinces me that this is a company with a great future. The software being developed here is amongst the best in the world and Flexiant should be congratulated on their successful work.

"The FP7 programme is funding almost 8000 projects like this across the European Union, and as we now look forward to the next EU research programme in 2013 it is encouraging to see the programme delivering so successfully. I'd encourage every go-ahead Scottish company to start looking at what help there is available from Europe to help them grow and develop."

According to Angela Constance MSP: "Flexiant has become a real local success story and I am delighted to have the opportunity to visit the company's Livingston base with Fergus Ewing MSP, the Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism, and Alyn Smith MEP, to see at first hand the innovative and exciting cutting edge new technology and software development work that the company is involved in.

"Flexiant is undertaking ground breaking work at both national and international level and has attracted European funding for three EU projects that it participates in. The company's achievements and products place it at the forefront of new technology developments. I wish it every success for the future."

Flexiant is a software and services company, one of only three independent public cloud providers in Europe and five worldwide. Its public cloud, FlexiScale, was Europe's first cloud platform and was launched in 2007. In March 2010 the company launched its flagship product, Extility, a software product that allows licensees to build their own cloud and sell cloud services under their own brand.