Broad-based strategy critical to meet diverse needs for advanced computing: report

Based on Ontario researcher survey

A new Ontario report is warning that the province and Canada will not be able to compete internationally without greater investments in advanced computing and the skilled personnel required to support researchers who are increasingly dependent upon it. The report from the Ontario Research & Innovation Optical Network (ORION) calls for a broad-based provincial strategy and more effective communication to address the needs of researchers in academia and industry.

Entitled Advanced Computing Transforming Innovation in Ontario (ACTION): Needs and Opportunities for Advanced Computing in Ontario, the report is part of a larger initiative to assess the needs, challenges and opportunities for advanced computing in Ontario. It wants policy and decision makers to understand that unless coordinated action and investment is undertaken quickly, the province's competitive position will be further eroded, undermining billions in research investments in areas considered top economic priorities.

"Discussions with researchers drilled down and documented the precise impact that the lack of AC access has on their research, ascertaining that it is a serious impediment to many researchers in Ontario ... It is estimated that the cost or value of better AC support is approximately one day per week — a 20% productivity loss/gain. If this estimate is accepted, then there are significant implications for institutional allocation of resources and competitiveness." — ORION ACTION Report

Although Ontario is the site of Canada's most powerful computing installation, the country ranks poorly internationally without a single high performance computing (HPC) facility in the global top 100. There's also a severe shortage of highly qualified personnel (HQP) required to assist researchers to access and utilize HPC infrastructure.

The aging of Canada's HPC infrastructure is also a focus of concern. The last time a major investment was made nationally by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) was 2006. A new $100-million competition won't result in any new funding until 2016 and two years is a lifetime in the HPC sector with increasingly powerful systems coming on stream all the time.

"It's not enough and it's too late. Large supercomputers last about two years before they need to be replaced," says report author Bill Applebe. "CFI provides very cyclical funding and the model is problematic for developing national structures."

Dr Darin Graham, president and CEO of ORION, says that while CFI's coordination and funding of advanced computing is a great first start, there's a need for more aligned approach to addressing future needs. ORION, the Ministry of Research and Innovation (MRI), the Ontario Centres of Excellence and the investment community all have a role to play. The ACTION report is proving valuable in pinpointing where future investments are required, guided by a coordinated, multi-year business plan.

"There are many pieces to the puzzle but it's clear we need to have more investment," says Graham. "Bill Mantel (MRI's assistant DM) is always a strong supporter for what is needed strategically and the formation of Compute Ontario is a huge step in taking a holistic perspective on the alignment that's required."

"In Ontario there are about 60 Compute Canada staff at the three major HPC centres and other affiliated centres (such as the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto), and they are concentrated in a few locations. By contrast, the largest HPC centres in US universities, such as the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA), may have as many as 200 staff at a single university site." — ORION ACTION Report

Applebe, who was recruited to Canada from Australia for a short-lived stint as CEO of Compute Canada, agrees that Ontario is taking seriously the future advanced computing needs of researchers in academia and industry, with solid support from MRI. The ministry stepped forward in collaboration with the federal government in 2012 to convince IBM to invest $175 million in a consortium of seven Ontario universities called the Southern Ontario Smart Computing Innovation Platform (SOSCIP). IBM provided a leading-edge supercomputer and other resources to the Univ of Toronto's SciNet HPC Datacentre and it remains Canada's most powerful HPC installation (R$, April 17/12).

Given HPC's pervasive use in the research community, Applebe surveyed researchers in the following areas: economics, humanities/arts, mathematics/statistics, computer science/ information technology, engineering, science and biomedical. The survey found a majority of researchers across all disciplines used HPC, data management and HQP and found it important, while 80% stated there was a current shortage or constraint in one of the three areas.

"From ORION's perspective, the challenge is, how do we plan so the report's recommendations can be put in place," says Graham. "There are things we can do alone and others that require coordination and collaboration with others. Advanced computing is fundamental in the research space and helping Ontario to lead."

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