Intersect Selects Hitachi Data Systems to Power AU$2M Research Cloud in New South Wales

Teaming Agreement Supports Plans for R&D Centre, Underlining NSW’s Depth and Calibre of ICT and Research

SYDNEY - August 1, 2013 - Hitachi Data Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), today announced that it has been selected by Intersect to build a New South Wales node under the Research Data Storage Infrastructure (RDSI) scheme. With an initial investment of around AU$2 million, the cloud platform will support data intensive research and collaboration, reinforcing Sydney’s position as one of the world’s foremost research centres. The infrastructure will connect 11 leading universities in NSW including the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and the University of Sydney, 2 of the world’s foremost universities, with other research institutions across Australia.

Intersect and Hitachi Data Systems have also signed Australia’s 1st teaming agreement to further serve the network’s members over the long term. The memorandum gives research bodies access to the Hitachi R&D program as Intersect works toward a next-generation R&D centre. The centre will enable research and innovation with information and communications technology (ICT) systems specifically designed for data-driven research and collaboration.

Intersect is Australia's largest full-service eResearch support agency, working closely with the research sector of NSW, including universities and relevant public and private sector agencies and their collaborating partners. Having secured funding from the RDSI, the Federal Government Super Science Initiative designed to harness the powerful potential of big data stored in nationally significant data sets, Intersect sought the right vendor partner to support its current research project as well as future developments such as the NSW R&D Centre supported by the Sydney RDSI node. Intersect selected Hitachi Data Systems over a panel of vendors because of the Hitachi solution’s tight integration, its robustness, flexibility and ease of management.

The Hitachi portfolio will create a single, fully integrated platform for all data, and is comprised of Hitachi NAS Platform (HNAS), Hitachi Content Platform (HCP), Hitachi Unified Storage (HUS), and tape, delivering 4 petabytes (PB) of online and object storage and 2PB of nearline storage. The new infrastructure will enable Intersect to offer data storage at no cost for researchers that qualify under the RDSI scheme. The data will be accessible via high-speed access to AARNET, the NeCTAR research cloud, and high-performance computing facilities, with access through file sharing, databases and applications.

Intersect CEO Dr. Ian Gibson said: "Hitachi Data Systems and Intersect share a commitment and dedication to R&D and innovation, which makes for a perfect partner to further enhance NSW’s status as Australia’s leading research state with the planned R&D Centre. The RDSI investment in the Sydney storage node positions NSW and our members in particular to compete favourably in the increasingly globalised and online world of research."

Neil Evans, vice president and country manager, Hitachi Data Systems Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands said: "We were drawn to this agreement by the depth and calibre of ICT and research in NSW. We expect the benefits to be both immediate and long-term for researchers, providing opportunities to collaborate with peers across Australia on data-driven research."

RDSI is the largest investment for research storage infrastructure in Australia’s history, and per capita, one of the world’s largest.

About the Research Data Storage Infrastructure (RDSI)
The RDSI Project is an AU$50 million Federal Government investment to strengthen Australia’s capability to support researchers conducting data intensive research and data intensive research collaborations.

The infrastructure will assist institutions to:

• Establish research data collections in a rich environment of high-end computational and data-intensive services.
• Sustain a quality of research in the digital age that includes the reproducibility of results and reduce institutional data storage costs.

The Research Data Storage Infrastructure (RDSI) Project, an initiative of the Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education, is funded from the Education Investment Fund under the Super Science (Future Industries) initiative.

About Intersect
Intersect is Australia's largest full-service eResearch support agency. Intersect works with the research sector of NSW to identify, develop and deliver world-class ICT enabled platforms to drive the next generation of research and innovation. Intersect provides cost effective information infrastructure, data storage, high performance computing, software development, training and expert consulting services for its 11 university members, affiliated members (the Office of Environment and Heritage and CSIRO) and for non-members. Intersect employs 75 highly skilled staff, with personnel across metropolitan and regional NSW, the ACT, Queensland and Victoria.

About Hitachi Data Systems
Hitachi Data Systems provides information technologies, services and solutions that help companies improve IT costs and agility, and innovate with information to make a difference in the world. Our customers gain compelling return on investment (ROI), unmatched return on assets (ROA), and demonstrable business impact. With approximately 6,000 employees worldwide, Hitachi Data Systems does business in more than 100 countries and regions. Our products, services and solutions are trusted by the world's leading enterprises, including more than 70% of the Fortune 100 and more than 80% of the Fortune Global 100. Visit us at http://www.hds.com/anz/.

About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 326,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2012 (ended March 31, 2013) consolidated revenues totaled 9,041 billion yen ($96.1 billion). Hitachi is focusing more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes information and telecommunication systems, power systems, industrial, transportation and urban development 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.

Press Contacts:
Hitachi Data Systems
Isabel Wagner
+61 2 9325 3365
isabel.wagner@hds.com

Intersect Australia Ltd
Leonie Hellmers
+61 2 8079 2536
leonie@intersect.org.au

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