DELIVERING VALUE MISSION BCNET Off Ers Cost-Eff Ective Shared Solutions That Place Its Members at the Forefront of Information and Communication Technology Innovation
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
/ ANNUAL REPORT DELIVERING VALUE MISSION BCNET off ers cost-eff ective shared solutions that place its members at the forefront of information and communication technology innovation. VISION B.C.’s research and higher education institutions will achieve their strategic objectives enabled by the contributions of BCNET. 4 Message from the President 6 Message from the Chair 8 BCNET: A Unique Collaboration 10 BCNET Members 12 Services: A Common Vision 14 BCNET: A Service Integrator 16 The BCNET Advanced Network 18 BCNET Advanced Network Service Levels 20 Building and Improving the Advanced Network 22 How are Researchers using the Advanced Network? 24 Commercial Internet Service 26 The BCNET Transit Exchange Service 28 New Services 32 The Power of a Connected Community 34 BCNET Advisory Committees and Working Groups 36 Serving Our Members 38 Board of Directors 40 BCNET Financial Overview 43 BCNET Financial Statements MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT MICHAEL HRYBYK, PRESIDENT AND CEO, BCNET Over the past year, BCNET carried out its mission of creating Distributed Medical Program continued to of Advanced Education, and most importantly, the cost-eff ective shared IT services for its members. We improved rely on the BCNET Advanced Network, which contributions of the BCNET member institutions. our network infrastructure to keep pace with the demands expanded to UBC Okanagan in Kelowna. The commitment of our Board of Directors, of our world-class research and teaching institutions. which consists of senior executives from higher And our open, collaborative model of working continued The generation of “big data” from all disciplines education, government and industry, and the to evolve to encompass an even wider community. is now routine, and is pushing requirements signifi cant eff orts of our skilled management and for connectivity, computing and storage; staff , have made the past year another success. BCNET continued to support the over-arching mission of B.C. the digital infrastructure to support these Our Committees and Working Groups provided post-secondary institutions to conduct research, improve disciplines is essential to their success and valuable suggestions and helped refi ne our current teaching and learning, and engage in community service. to the advancement of knowledge. services and off ered guidance for future initiatives. High-profi le projects at TRIUMF and NEPTUNE Canada, as well Our Transit Exchanges are now integral parts of Thanks to everyone in the BCNET community for as other initiatives in the sciences and engineering disciplines, these post-secondary and research communities, the eff orts over the past year. We will continue pushed the upper bounds of network use. The demand from and function as increasingly important data hubs. to adapt to the new and exciting challenges the arts, humanities, and social sciences is also on the rise, These innovative centres allow local community next evolution of information technology brings. refl ecting our increasingly digital—and social—world. data to be exchanged with BCNET members, and serve as a way to connect to the Internet through a Interactive videoconferencing via the Blue Jeans Network, and competitive marketplace of commercial providers. world-class access to content networks such as Google, Microsoſt and Amazon, helped faculty and students at higher education None of the above would be possible without the MICHAEL HRYBYK institutions attain their academic goals. The signature UBC continued support of CANARIE, the B.C. Ministry President and CEO, BCNET 4 BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT 5 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR JAY BLACK, CIO, SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY BCNET is committed to service excellence and continuously We have been reaching out to provincial delivering value for members. Whether we are building bigger and institutions and organizations to explore new faster networks in support of teaching, learning and research, or partnerships and opportunities. Furthermore, leveraging our collective vision to share services, our members are we have completed major enhancements to partnering eff ectively to align our goals, strengths and resources, our network, and are looking at leveraging and to realize greater effi ciencies and economies of scale. our assets to advance existing and future members of BCNET. Digital infrastructure for research, innovation and education is evolving rapidly. We are a willing, enthusiastic, respected and Our collaborative, unifi ed approach is capable player in this emerging digital ecosystem, and we’re without parallel, and I am proud of our enabling our researchers and educators to connect and innovate accomplishments. Our model for shared globally, nationally and provincially. services is paying real dividends, and its success is enticing other organizations to We have been successful at reducing costs for members by sharing follow our lead. technology services. For example, this year we launched a data backup service that’s enabling members to leverage existing campus equipment, staff and resources, thereby reducing their operational costs by - per cent. Additionally, we have saved members over , on storage equipment costs through a pre-negotiated JAY BLACK Master Service Agreement with NetApp. Chair, BCNET Board of Directors 6 BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT 7 BCNET: A UNIQUE COLLABORATION MEMBER OWNED. MEMBER OPERATED. MEMBER SHARED. ABOUT BCNET BCNET FUNDING A DISTINCTIVE COMMUNITY OF PARTNERS BCNET is a not-for-profi t, shared information technology BCNET’s high-speed, Since 1988, BCNET has been BCNET has built a strong services consortium led by its members, British Columbia’s high-capacity, fi bre optic dedicated to meeting the foundation of mutual trust and research universities and institutes. Owned, governed and advanced network provides unique technology needs of its respect based on many years of funded primarily by its members, BCNET facilitates a unique, a common and powerful members by delivering leading- successful collaborations with collaborative inter-institutional environment—one based platform to deliver services 29% edge technology services in technology leaders across higher on equality and common goals—to explore and evaluate effi ciently, cost-eff ectively support of teaching, learning, education institutions in B.C. shared IT solutions for mutual technology challenges. and reliably. The network 50% research and community. interconnects 65 higher This foundation has been the BCNET’s shared services approach is designed to help education and research catalyst for the development member institutions cut costs, minimize technology institution sites in British 21% of a distinctive community—an duplication, improve operational effi ciency and better Columbia and 72 colleges, incomparable partnership—that serve their students, faculty, staff and communities. schools and universities aligns a multitude of higher through the Provincial education institutions in the Learning Network (PLNet). province to work together � CORE MEMBERS � as an integrated whole. PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT & CANARIE GRANTS OTHER SERVICES 8 BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT 9 BCNET MEMBERS CORE MEMBERS HIGHER EDUCATION MEMBERS RESEARCH MEMBERS the northern way of caring UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL OF NORTHERN B.C. BC INTERUNIVERSITY DATA CENTRE KELOWNA GENERAL HOSPITAL ROYAL INLAND HOSPITAL BC CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL AGRICULTURE AND AGRI-FOOD CANADA ENVIRONMENT CANADA CANADIAN CENTRE FOR CLIMATE MODELLING AND ANALYSIS NATIONAL WATER RESEARCH INSTITUTE NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL DOMINION RADIO ASTROPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY ROYAL JUBILEE HOSPITAL HERZBERG INSTITUTE OF ASTROPHYSICS INSTITUTE FOR FUEL CELL INNOVATION 10 BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT BCNET 11/12 ANNUAL REPORT 11 SERVICES A COMMON VISION “In these challenging economic times, THE VALUE OF SHARED IT SERVICES With today’s constrained BCNET facilitates an inter- colleges and universities must work budgets, campuses in British institutional forum amongst together to attain academic and BCNET’s unique collaborative model is helping Columbia are exploring ways members for collaboration and operational successes. The shared- B.C.’s research universities and institutes to share IT services to reduce discussion about important services approach can help higher alleviate fi nancial pressures by reducing costs technology duplication and information technology issues education institutions cut costs and and providing better economies of scale. minimize their campus and challenges. Working better serve their students, faculty, staff , operating costs. in this cooperative setting, and communities. It is a model that can members develop successful allow institutions to stay focused on the The rising cost of supporting models of operation to share core missions of teaching, learning, and information technology services, information technology services research.” combined with shrinking and determine the number and budgets, are placing growing STATE-OF-THE-ART breadth of services that are LEVERAGING LOWER fi nancial pressure on campus IT needed to better serve students, EDUCAUSE Review, vol. 46, no. 4 (July/August 2011) TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY COST OF budgets. Moreover, demand for faculty, staff , and communities. LUIS M. PROENZA COLLECTIVE STANDARDS services is rising as students, President | University of Akron EXPERTISE OWNERSHIP BUYING POWER faculty and staff are increasingly ROY A. CHURCH dependent on mobile devices President | Lorain County Community College IMPROVING SERVICES IMPROVING and