IBM targets SMEs

By Candice Jones for IBM
Johannesburg, 15 May 2008

Local enterprise clients are showing maturity in server consolidation; however, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are still following the traditional "one application, one server model", says IBM.

The company says it is trying to persuade local SMEs to consider the repercussions of scaling in the traditional manner. "What we are doing with our enterprise clients we are trying to filter down into the SME layer," says IBM SA modular systems business development manager Bevan Lock.

Most companies are now looking at rightsizing their IT infrastructure, particularly when it comes to the server environment, he says. However, SMEs are falling behind in terms of best practice.

"In a few years' time, those companies still using the per-application, server model will have to consider consolidation, especially with our power situation."

Making good on promises last year by the local arm, the company is approaching the SME market with the HS12 Express BladeCentre, which it believes is correctly priced for the small and mid-market. "The SME market does not have the financial backing to support or buy an enterprise-class BladeCentre."

According to Andrew Soddy, another of the company's modular systems development managers, the HS12 is delivered with a uni-processor system. "A single processor, with the power of two cores, allows the BladeCentre to be sold at a more affordable rate."

Soddy says storage is a second challenge for the SME client. "Enterprise clients do not generally use local storage, whereas smaller businesses do."

To allow for the SME to use local storage, the HS12 supports dual fixed or hot-swappable solid state drives, dual hot-swappable SAS HDDs and dual fixed SATA HDDs.

The enterprise BladeCentre generally requires particular electrical connections, which Soddy says ranges outside of the SME's budget. HS12 uses a general clean power point, which reduces the installation costs for small businesses.

The HS12 installation is governed by a wizard set-up, which IBM says reduces the skills costs required for an enterprise installation.

The company is also pitching its JS12 Blade Server to the SME market.