IBM Preps 'Deep Computing' Service For The Channel

Called Deep Computing, the service is part of program that IBM has been running for the past 18 months under the auspices of a Proof of Concept Center that's part of the company's Systems and Technology Group, which operates data centers in Houston; Poughkeepsie, N.Y.; and Montpellier, France.

Led by David Gelardi, the Deep Computing team works with IBM customers to provide capacity on demand for custom applications using various IBM tools, ranging from WebSphere to the latest tools available from IBM's Tivoli software unit. The effort predates similar services recently promised by Sun Microsystems in which customers can run some batch-oriented applications for $1 per CPU hour, said Gelardi, vice president of Deep Computing Capacity on Demand at IBM. He noted that the IBM service--already available for channel partners to resell--costs half of what Sun expects to charge for its service.

So far, two partners have signed up to resell the IBM service, which is typically reserved for a relatively small number of high-performance computing applications. The partners are Exa and Landmark Graphics, a unit of Halliburton that resells IT services to the petroleum industry.

Exa developed an application called PowerFlow, which simulates wind tunnels to facilitate the design of vehicles such as race cars, motorcycles and trucks. According to Exa CEO Stephen Remondi, the company is using IBM's Deep Computing service because it allows them to create and run complex computing jobs on behalf of customers in a few days without making any fixed-cost investments.

Channel partners that sign up to offer the Deep Computing service will generally receive high margins, Gelardi said. IBM seeks partners that can sell the service multiple times within a given vertical, because IBM typically doesn't turn a profit on the service until the fifth engagement, he added.