Data Center Middle East Awards recognize achievement and innovation in region

Dubai, 16 November 2011 - The annual Data Center Middle East Awards ceremony took place last night in Dubai which recognized both achievement and innovation across the region. The Awards were presented as part of the Data Center conference organized by BroadGroup which takes place in the region each year.

Winning companies who were presented with the Awards were as follows:

Best New Data Center: eHosting DataFort

The company is launching its new Data Center next month in the International Media Production Zone of Dubai. The state of the art facility will include self-regulated cooling and is designed as a hybrid Tier 2 plus Tier 3 data center;

Best Data Center Middle East: SmartWorld

Smartworld is a leader in airport systems integration and aviation infrastructure services. Schneider Electric has installed two Tier 3 data centers within Dubai World Central, a distinct urban aviation community located around Al Maktoum International Airport. The in-row cooling architecture helped the winner to reduce energy costs by at least 30%.

Best Cloud Services Provider: Meeza

Meeza has continued to innovate its range of cloud services accessed from anywhere in the region but securely hosted in its state of the art data center in Qatar. The latest SaaS applications for Payroll and HR demonstrate the sustained lead taken by the company.

Best Colocation Facility: eHosting DataFort

The company is one of the longest serving players in the region and has built a strong record in delivering colocation services using high quality data center infrastructure.

Best Managed Services Award: Injazat Data Systems

Providing a range of managed services to Abu Dhabi Government entities as well as vertical markets including the oil, gas and telecom sector, Injazat has demonstrated a quality consultative process in delivering managed services to its customers.

Green Award for Sustainability: UAE University in Al Ain

With more than 12000 students the university has built a new data center to respond to the storage requirements while maintaining low carbon emissions. In conjunction with Schneider Electric, the university has enhanced and upgraded its storage facility.

Data Center Solution of the Year: HP

As focus in the data center sector continues to be placed on energy efficiency and low carbon impact, HP's Direct Air Free Cooling, part of its Next Generation Datacenters has achieved PUE ratings of between 1.25 to 1.3 across the EMEA region.

CEO of the Year Award: Mr Yasser Zeineldin

With a customer base that includes some of the leading companies in the UAE and international companies present in the market, Mr Zeineldin has demonstrated exceptional leadership, innovation in the technologies used and vision for the company.

The event was officially opened by Dr. Eesa Mohammed Bastaki, CEO, ICT Fund. Dr Bastaki commented on the need for wider adoption of cloud computing services which would generate cost effective opportunities for businesses operating in the UAE.

"We hope that this year's event has contributed to a wider industry discussion about the role of data centers and the emerging adoption of cloud computing," commented Warwick Dunkley, vice president of BroadGroup. "Clearly there are developments taking place across the Middle Eastern region which will generate sustained demand for data centers, and the huge opportunity cloud computing presents for small and medium businesses to increase their IT agility and competitive edge".

BroadGroup will be expanding its range of consulting and event services across the Middle Eastern region in the coming year.

Enquiries: enquiries@datacentres.com

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