Big Fish Landed By NI Science Park

A local internet hosting company, Big Wet Fish (BWF), has been welcomed as the newest tenant to a Belfast Lough-side based facility, the Northern Ireland Science Park and is marking its arrival with the launch of a new cloud based hosting service which allows customers to save on hardware costs and enjoy the benefits of a flexible and reliable network.

Established in 2002, BWF has rapidly expanded from a local start-up to an established and trusted web host managing tens of thousands of websites for clients in the UK and Ireland as well as around the world.

The introduction of the cloud service will provide customers with a cost effective IT alternative to the inelastic traditional server approach allowing them to better handle the demands of the continually evolving business environment.

The BWF Cloud is powered by OnApp a world leader in cloud management software.

The cloud allows users to add additional server resources to their servers with no downtime. The BWF cloud boasts a 'high availability' platform, which will result in fewer server outages, caused by hardware failure.

Larger clients can buy a Virtual Data Centre and deploy as many or as few virtual cloud machines as they wish managing them from a web based interface or a handy iPhone app.

Stephen Kinkaid, owner of Big Wet Fish Hosting said: "The move to the Northern Ireland Science Park marks a major growth drive for BWF.

"Not only have we increased our service offerings with the addition of the cloud hosting facility but in last year alone we enjoyed an 85% increase in turnover and in the near future will look to recruit locally in sales, account and support divisions.

"With a clear focus on technology and unrivalled connectivity, the Science Park address reassures potential customers of BWF's ability to provide a quality, dependable service.

"We offer a fully managed hosting service which sets us apart from many providers so internet connectivity reliability is essential and the main reason we decided to move to the Park. Being surrounded by like-minded companies is also a big plus with networking opportunities presenting themselves on a daily basis. We look forward to working and growing here at the Park," he added.

Northern Ireland Science Park Director of Corporate Real Estate and Facilities, Mervyn Watley commented: "At the Science Park we aim to provide a flexible innovation ecosystem conducive to growth which means tenants to expand quickly with little disruption to their day-to-day operations.

"The Park's open access and carrier neutral arrangement was the model for Project Kelvin and it is surrounded by a resilient ring of 5GB fibre optic cabling meaning security of connection is guaranteed which is without doubt vital for businesses operating in the online arena.

"I am delighted to welcome BWF to the Park and look forward to providing support during key periods of growth for the company."

(BMcC/CD)