Top industry professionals gather to discuss market trends in data protection and infrastructure while also showcasing the latest technology in storage and security industries

September 07, 2015

ISIT, a leading systems integrator of storage and information security solutions and the Storage Networking Industry Association of Europe (SNIA Europe), an association of producers and consumers of storage networking products, has revealed that the pioneering edition of the ‘SNIA Middle East Academy,’ which was held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Dubai, concluded on a high note. The event attracted the participation of more than 120 top industry professionals—taking part in the discussion of market trends in data protection and infrastructure while also showcasing the latest technologies in storage and security industries.

Present during the exciting one-day seminar were leading industry vendors in data protection and infrastructure, end users, qualifying channel partners and local market experts. The latest edition of the event threw the spotlight on key topics and challenges of the industry, which includes the daunting challenges for IT managers to combat the rising volume, cost, and complexity of storage; the need for quick decision making on other issues concerning storage architecture, design, operations and performance. Other topics covered during the event also included the increasing need for state-of-the-art storage technologies such as Software Defined Storage, Solid State Technologies such as Flash, and security best practices for protecting data on storage systems and networks to help enhance and improve efforts in protecting critical data of companies in the Middle East.

“These are truly exciting times for this industry segment as the demand for storage has grown by more than 50 per cent Year-on-Year (YoY) in recent years. If storage costs continue their rapid rise then enterprises must learn to efficiently manage storage, particularly if they are to exploit new forms of information such as more detailed financial data, digital images in life sciences or video in media companies,” said Mahesh Vaidya, CEO, ISIT and Chairman of Middle East Committee, SNIA Europe. “We are happy at the strong response that we received from this event as it complemented SNIA Europe’s efforts to advance the interests of the storage industry by empowering organizations to translate data and information into business value by promoting the adoption of enabling technologies and standards. The initial feedback we received has been overwhelmingly positive and has inspired us to continue to improve the structure and focus of the event to keep it relevant and rewarding for all participants. We are already planning for its next edition in March 2016.”

“This was truly a landmark event as industry professionals from all over the region converged to learn more about new applications, technology trends and impact of new workloads like Big Data, Cloud and Analytics on Storage Industry in terms of performance, data protection, agility and data growth management. The event successfully met its objectives of raising awareness as well as it served as a networking platform among professionals within the storage networking industry. The seminars in particular, helped bring light to present technical and business IT issues to the participants,” said Ossama El Samadoni, Director of Storage Solutions at Dell, Vice Chairman, Middle East Committee, SNIA Europe.

“We are proud to be part of SNIA Europe and the SNIA Middle East Academy, and we will continue to support the association especially in participating at events like this with our long-standing experience and interest in storage and IT technologies. We have surely benefited from SNIA’s in-depth vendor-neutral content along with views on emerging trends from leading storage vendors. This will help us as we continue to optimize and refresh our infrastructure to take advantage on newer technologies. We see an opportunity for this type of knowledge sharing to a broad audience across UAE and the Middle East. We appreciate the effort of the co-organizers ISIT and SNIA Europe to make this event a success,” concluded Romilh Keetara, IT Manager of One & Only Royal Mirage.

Leading IT vendors like Dell, Netapp, Hitachi Data Systems, Symantec-Veritas, VEEAM and Purestorage, which are all members of SNIA Europe, shared the latest technology and market trends in data protection and infrastructure during the event. SNIA Middle East Academy also featured talks from top industry experts like Mahesh Vaidya, Chairman-Middle East Committee – SNIA Europe and CEO, ISIT; (Industry Update); Ossama El Samadoni, Vice Chairman-Middle East Committee – SNIA Europe and Director, Storage Solutions, Dell (Designing and Implementing Workload Optimized Storage); Jay Diddigi, Member, Middle East Committee – SNIA Europe, Head of Information Security, ISIT (Practical, Secure Storage – A Vendor Agnostic View); Andrew Mason, Chief Technologist, Middle East & Pakistan, Hitachi Data Systems (Software Defined Foundation for Enterprise Storage); Amer Chebaro, Regional Director  for Gulf & KSA, Symantec-Veritas  (Managing Information in a Hybrid World); Mo Dualeh, Regional Sales Manager for Middle East & N. Africa, Purestorage (The Impact of using All-Flash Arrays on Mission Critical Application Performance); Lars Ejskjaer, Technical Advisor, Netapp (Software-Defined Storage and Cloud: Get over the gravity of data) and Gregg Petersen, Regional Director, VEEAM (Enable the Always-On Business).

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Mercedes, BMW, Audi receive top honors in prestigious gala awards night

November 25, 2014

Some of the world’s leading car brands took centre stage at the recently concluded pioneering edition of the Middle East Car of the Year (MECOTY) awards, the most coveted award of the regional automotive industry, which was held at the Meydan Beach Club in Dubai. Top brands including BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Infiniti, Cadillac, Toyota, Jaguar and Rolls Royce were among the winners announced in an exciting and stunning gala awards night, which was attended by top officials from all major automotive brands in this region.

“We are truly overwhelmed at the successful response that we have received in organizing the first ever edition of MECOTY,” said Saeed Al Marzouqi, Chairman, MECOTY. “There was always a need for car manufacturers to be recognized by an award body that will judge independently and be free of any commercial bias, as end users also needed a common platform to read authentic reviews from professionals. The positive response and large turnout for the awards and the exhibition shows that we have successfully addressed this need. Rest assured, MECOTY will continue to be a key platform for automotive brands in this region.”

Speaking about Dubai Properties’ platinum sponsorship, Mohammed Al Habbai, Chief Officer for Urban Planning and Infrastructure at Dubai Properties Group, said: “We are delighted to have sponsored the Middle East Car of the Year (MECOTY) Awards.  On behalf of Dubai Properties (DP), I would like to congratulate the organisers for the successful event and the winners for the well-deserved recognition for their dedication to the automotive industry”.

The accompanying car exhibition of the awards, which ran during the weekend, also saw an overwhelming response from the local automotive community with thousands of visitors. Prominent brands placed on display at the exhibition included Audi, Bentley, BMW, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Ford, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jaguar, Lexus, Land Rover, KIA, Maserati, McLaren, MINI, Mercedes, Nissan, Opel, Rolls Royce, Toyota & Volkswagen.

MECOTY awards are the only independent recognition and acknowledgement to car manufacturers that the cars they are selling in the region are in line with consumer needs. All nominees underwent a stringent selection process from a select panel of judges, who were handpicked to represent their respective countries. Looking to add more value and encourage interaction from a regional audience, MECOTY empowered consumers by letting them vote for their favorite car through a custom Facebook app as well, which resulted in close to 11,300 independent consumers voting for their favorite automobiles.

Commenting on the S-Class winning the ‘Car of the Year’ and ‘Best Luxury Sedan’ awards, Mike Belk, CEO of Daimler Middle East and Levant said: “To receive two awards at the Middle East Car of the Year awards is indeed an honour for Mercedes-Benz and recognises our leadership position in the luxury automotive segment. Since its inception, the S-Class has always set the benchmark in the luxury segment and the new S-Class continues this tradition.”

“It is a great honor to have been recognized at this year’s MECOTY awards. The Future of Motoring Award is especially significant for us, as BMW Group is strongly investing in future models and innovative technologies. In June 2014 we launched a new brand, BMW i, in the Middle East Region, which stands for innovative mobility”   said Johannes Seibert, Managing Director for BMW Group Middle East.  “The BMW i8 with its unique hybrid technology and new materials as carbon fiber is truly a car of the future. We thank the MECOTY judges for honouring BMW i and the BMW i8.”

“We are thrilled and honoured to not only receive the MECOTY award for the Audi RS 7 as the Best Premium Performance Sedan but also for being named as MECOTY’s Consumer Car of the Year—a recognition that fully affirms the Audi RS 7’s presence as a family car that is both elegant and incredibly powerful with cutting-edge engineering. ” said Trevor Hill, Managing Director, Audi Middle East. “We congratulate the organizers of MECOTY for a successful inaugural edition and look forward to its continued success in the future.”

Winners named during the event include;

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