SNIA opens India chapter

Circuit EC / New Delhi

The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA), an apex industry body catering to research, learning and knowledge-sharing in storage networking has decided to open an India chapter that is affiliated to SNIA South Asia. Registered as a non-profit organisation, SNIA India would be responsible for growth, standardisation and education regarding information storage management in India. IDC Asia-Pacific figures say that the storage market is set to grow at 17 percent, from $134 million to $425.8 million in 2005.

P K Gupta, acting chairman, SNIA India and director, Strategic Development, Intercontinental Operations, Legato Software said, “SNIA India will be established as a single platform for vendors, users and educational institutions. Our aim is to increase support for standards and new technology developments so that storage networks can become more efficient”.

SNIA India is targeting a minimum of 100 members in its first year. The body has announced that it will take part in storage events and industry seminars. It will offer services such as educational courses, training, certification and tutorials. SNIA India has made plans to tie-up with educational institutions to run storage networking courses to help professionals get SNIA certifications and to create a pool of storage networking experts.

Steve Jerman, lead architect, Storage Management Software, HP, said that SNIA India will help in increasing the performance of storage assets and will centralise management and automation to enhance IT efficiency and productivity.

S R Balasubramanian, VP, IS, Hero Honda said, “With SNIA India chapter in place, it will be of great help to meet the industry under one roof and understand, assimilate and implement storage technologies better.” SNIA was founded in 1997 with the mission of overcoming end-user storage challenges.