EURECA at Data Centre Transformation Conference & DCA Seminar 2017 – review

The DCA’s update seminar on the 10th July 2017 was not only an opportunity to bring DCA members up to speed with the work undertaken to date but also to share the plans for the future in its continued support of members and the data centre sector. 

The Seminar also provided an opportunity for members to gain an update from some of the EURECA consortium on the EURECA project and the new training modules which are being produced. The update also allowed DCA’s strategic Partners including Simon Allen to speak about the new DCiRN (Data Centre Incident Reporting Network) and Emma Fryer who provided an update on the valuable work Tech UK do in supporting of the data centre sector, this was followed by networking drinks in the evening.  

On the 11th July the DCA hosted its 7th Annual Conference which took place at Manchester University. Data Centre Transformation Conference 2017 organised in association with DCS and Angel Business Communications was a huge success and continues to go from strength to strength attracting both enterpriser and public-sector delegates from across the UK.

The quality of content and healthy debate which took place in all sessions was testament as to just how well run the workshops were; So, I would also like to say a big thank you to all the chairs, workshop sponsors and the committee who worked so hard to ensure the sessions were interactive, lively and educational.   

The workshop topics covered subject matter from across the entire DC sector, however research and development continued to feature strongly in many of the sessions which is not surprising given the speed of change we are having to contend with as the demand for digital services continues to grow and this included particular interest in the EURECA project by suppliers looking to collaborate and support the public sector. 

Having seen the feedback sheets from all the attending delegates it was clear that a huge amount was gained from the day, not just in respect of contacts and knowledge but also the insight gained from speaking too and listening to others who share the same issues and same business challenges. One delegate said it was “refreshing to come to an event where he felt comfortable enough to speak out and learn on his own terms, without feeling we was being sold too”. High praise indeed so thankyou to all the delegates who attended and helped make the day such a success. 

We closed the conference with a sit-down dinner in the evening with good food & wine served by the university students and of course great company which for some meant we were still out to watch the sun come up!