The changing rate of technology KEN BAKER, INDUSTRY CONSULTANT, IT/ INFRASTRUCTURE, GLOBAL LEADER

Change is constant

  The question is how fast

  what is your measure of change?

  Is it the Ipod/Iphone/Ipad? Some tablet thing?

  Or are you a gamer?

  If so, you are missing the curve!

  Your job is know when change affects you .anticipate it.

  Keep up with when hardware and software manufacturers turn products.

  How do you do that?

How fast does hardware change?

  Processor changes occur every 6-12 months

  Memory changes occur every 36-48 months

  Hardware manufacturers want “step” changes within this period.

  Frequency/speed/cache

  Wholesale changes to platforms occur every 24-36 months.

  What does this mean to users?

  Manufacturers expect users to refresh their estate on a rolling basis every three years

  What does this mean to engineers?

The role of the hardware engineer

  New hardware designs for enterprise products take 18 months to develop

  Another 6 months to integrate into a factory setting

  This means any new designs must be started as the prior design is released

  No “downtime” for hardware designs

  Innovations can take even longer, so design engineers must always be thinking next next gen while working on next gen

  Cost is king in the business of designing enterprise hardware!

  Pennies(or pence!) matter!

Context is important

  HP, IBM, and Dell sold more than 2.2 million servers last quarter

  That does not count Google, or others that manufacture their own hardware

  That equates to   4.4 million power supplies

  4-6 million processors

  15-20 million memory DIMM’s

  10 million server fans

  So it is important to understand that costs are king   a single part costing 25p adds up when the numbers are so high

  So the role of the hardware engineer is paramount

The Role You Play

  Hardware Manufacturers need change agents

  That’s you

  Software needs Hardware

  Hardware changes more quickly than software

  Google is perfect example

How do you keep up with the industry?

  Web?

  Twitter?

  Facebook?

  LinkedIn?

  What else is there?

  Hmm, let’s see, IDC, Gartner, CBRE, The Green Grid, ASHRAE TC9.9

  The point is, make sure you are hititng the right social media sites NOW!