SNIA Solid State Storage Initiative Selected by Flash Memory Summit 2011 as a Best of Show Award Winner

For release:

2011-08-11

Enterprise Performance Test Specification Recognized for Most Innovative Flash Memory Enterprise Business Application

Flash Memory Summit 2011, Santa Clara, CA August 11, 2011 –The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) announced that the SNIA Solid State Storage Initiative’s Enterprise Performance Test Specification (PTS) has been chosen by the Flash Memory Summit as a Best of Show award winner for Most Innovative Flash Memory Enterprise Business Application. The annual Best of Show awards is the premier opportunity for industry recognition of innovative products and solutions, and how they are being used in the marketplace.

The Enterprise PTS (/pts) defines a suite of tests and test methodologies necessary to enable comparative testing of individual Solid State Storage (SSS) enterprise device performance. Over 50 individuals from 25 companies have been working on the SSS PTS since early 2009. These companies represent solid state storage industry-leading - manufacturers, controller makers, test labs, and computer system OEMs.

“As the 6^th year of the Flash Memory Summit, the Awards Committee was impressed with the increasing level of innovation delivered by the SNIA Solid State Storage Initiative which brought together 25 technology companies and successfully delivered the industry’s 1^st enterprise solid state storage performance test specification,” said Tom Coughlin, Summit Chairperson and President of Coughlin Associates. “SNIAnow enables buyers to fairly compare the performance specifications of solid state storage products from different manufacturers.”

“We are very proud to be the recipient for this prestigious award that illustrates the collaborate efforts of our members to give system integrators and enterprise IT professionals the tools to objectively evaluate the performance of SSD products on the market today,” said Paul Wassenberg, Chair of the SNIA Solid State Storage Initiative.

Winning products were judged by a panel of industry experts who evaluated each nomination according to the following criteria:

Distinctiveness of the application, technology, or product
Central use of flash memory as a solution or innovation
Technical and business significance to the general marketplace

For a complete list of all the Flash Memory Summit Best of Show awards winners, visit www.flashmemorysummit.com.

About the SSSI

The SNIA Solid State Storage Initiative (SSSI) fosters the growth and success of the market for solid state storage in both enterprise and client environments. Members of the SSSI work together to promote the development of technical standards and tools, educate the IT communities about solid state storage, perform market outreach that highlights the virtues of solid state storage, and collaborate with other industry associations on solid state storage technical work. SSSI member companies represent a variety of segments in the IT industry; the membership list can be found at /forums/sssi/about/members/. For more information on SNIA’s Solid State Storage activities, visit snia.org/sssi and get involved in the conversation at twitter.com/SNIASolidState.

About the SNIA
The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) is a not–for–profit global organization, made up of some 400 member companies spanning virtually the entire storage industry. SNIA’s mission is to lead the storage industry worldwide in developing and promoting standards, technologies, and educational services to empower organizations in the management of information. To this end, the SNIA is uniquely committed to delivering standards, education, and services that will propel open storage networking solutions into the broader market. For additional information, visit the SNIA web site at www.snia.org.

About Flash Memory Summit

Flash Memory Summit is the only conference dedicated entirely to flash memory and its applications. It is intended for system designers, analysts, hardware and software engineers, product marketing and marketing communications specialists, and engineering and marketing managers. It features forums, half-day tutorials, paper and panel sessions, and expert tables. Subjects include harsh environments, laptops, enterprise storage system applications, consumer products, performance, product design, caching methods, design methods, software, new technologies, market research, testing and reliability, and security. The Summit also includes exhibits of the latest products and product awards. For more information, visit www.flashmemorysummit.com. Twitter: flashmem Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flash-Memory-Summit/72498807894

About Conference ConCepts, Inc.

Founded in 1994, Conference ConCepts is a full-service professional conference and association management company that provides extensive capabilities in all aspects of technical conference management. Conference ConCepts develops and produces events both on its own, and in partnership with associations, corporations, and publishers. The skill sets of the company’s employees and contractors, representing over 200 cumulative years of experience, enables Conference ConCepts to offer clients a choice of services, ranging from assistance with a single aspect of a conference to the complete development and administration of a full-fledged “turnkey” event. For more information about Conference ConCepts, visit: http://www.confconcepts.com