Hitachi Data Systems Customers Recognized as Laureates in the 24th Annual IDG Computerworld Honors Program

Global Information Technology Awards Pay Tribute to Individuals and Organizations that Use Information Technology to Benefit Society

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — June 4, 2012 — Hitachi Data Systems Corporation (HDS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., (TSE: 6501), today announced that customers Seattle Children’s and Gulf JP Company, Ltd. have been named 2012 Computerworld Honors Laureate award winners by the IDG Computerworld Honors Program. Seattle Children’s will be honored in the category of Healthcare, and Gulf JP will be recognized in the Economic Development category. The Computerworld Honors awards will be presented at the annual Laureates Medal ceremony and Gala Awards today, June 4, 2012, at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C. The awards program honors visionary applications of information technology promoting positive social, economic and educational change.

“We congratulate Seattle Children’s and Gulf JP on the well-deserved honor of being recognized by Computerworld for their exciting and important work,” said Asim Zaheer, senior vice president, Worldwide Marketing, Hitachi Data Systems. “We take pride in working with our customers to deliver groundbreaking solutions and services that promote change on a humanitarian level, and look forward to continuing to develop innovative technologies that allow organizations to improve their communities by turning technology into sustainable solutions.”

“There’s no question technology plays a vital role in driving business forward. It ensures an organization’s ability to compete, innovate, communicate and thrive. What the Computerworld Honors Laureates so clearly demonstrate is technology’s role in moving society forward. Computerworld acknowledges and applauds the outstanding work being done by individuals and organizations who have successfully used technology to improve the quality of our lives and that of future generations,” said John Amato, vice president/publisher, Computerworld. “Computerworld is proud to name the 2012 class of Laureates and celebrate their initiatives benefiting society through the innovative use of IT.”

Seattle Children’s
For more than 100 years, Seattle Children’s has specialized in meeting the unique physical, emotional and developmental needs of children, from infancy through young adulthood. Seattle Children’s is an exceedingly progressive healthcare organization, delivering the utmost critical services and diagnostics. Ensuring uninterrupted access to its information is equally vital. Patient records, cutting-edge research data and transactional accounts must be available anywhere, anytime across this constantly changing and growing healthcare entity.

When the IT department embarked upon an enterprise-wide virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) strategy, the goal was to incorporate best-of-class hardware, software and networking gear to ensure a flawless deployment. Seattle Children’s installed Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform (VSP) and Hitachi NAS Platform, powered by BlueArc^®, in its primary data center to function as the centralized storage solution. Since deployment, the Seattle Children’s IT department now operates a dynamic, scalable 24/7 environment with zero disruptions to patients.

Gulf JP Company
Headquartered in Bangkok, Gulf JP is one of Thailand’s largest independent providers of electricity, servicing both the general public and users in the main industrial zones of the country. While the power industry is one of the core sectors driving economic growth in Thailand, the increasing number of power plants was putting a strain on the country’s demand for energy. To provide better business continuity to its customers, Gulf JP required a solution for effective and reliable data backup.

To ensure IT operations provide maximum performance and backup to support 24/7 electricity generation, Gulf JP chose a solution based on Hitachi midrange solutions and Hitachi replication software. Since updating its IT infrastructure using solutions from HDS, Gulf JP has hired more than 400 employees, and that figure is expected to hit 1,000 in 2015, driving the local economies. Gulf JP has also inspired confidence in the local communities by providing them with maximum productivity while keeping an environmental conscience. Most importantly, Gulf JP’s updated IT infrastructure ensures business continuity in the main industrial zones of Thailand, which are the areas most important to the country’s economic development.

About the Computerworld Honors Program
Founded by International Data Group (IDG) in 1988, the Computerworld Honors Program is governed by the not-for-profit Computerworld Information Technology Awards Foundation. Computerworld Honors is the longest running global program to honor individuals and organizations that use information technology to promote positive social, economic and educational change.

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About Hitachi Data Systems

Hitachi Data Systems provides best-in-class information technologies, services and solutions that deliver compelling customer ROI, unmatched return on assets (ROA) and demonstrable business impact. With a vision that IT must be virtualized, automated, cloud-ready and sustainable, Hitachi Data Systems offers solutions that improve IT costs and agility. With more than 5,700 employees worldwide, Hitachi Data Systems does business in more than 100 countries and regions. Hitachi Data Systems products, services and solutions are trusted by the world’s leading enterprises, including more than 70 percent of the Fortune 100 and more than 80 percent of the Fortune Global 100. Hitachi Data Systems believes that data drives our world – and information is the new currency. To learn more, visit: http://www.hds.com

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi, Ltd., (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 320,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2011 (ended March 31, 2012) consolidated revenues totaled 9,665 billion yen ($117.8 billion). Hitachi will focus more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes information and telecommunication systems, power systems, environmental, industrial and transportation systems, and social and urban systems, as well as the sophisticated materials and key devices that support them. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com.

© Hitachi Data Systems Corporation 2012. All Rights Reserved. Hitachi is a registered trademark of Hitachi, Ltd. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries. Hitachi Data Systems is a registered trademark and service mark of Hitachi, Ltd. in the United States and other countries.

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