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EGI-Engage · Project

Pan-European Cloud and Data Platform Letting Businesses Access Shared Computing Power

digitalTestedTRL 5Thin data (2/5)
egi.eu

Imagine you need a massive computer to crunch data but can't afford one — so instead, you tap into a network of computers spread across 25 countries, like borrowing processing power the way you'd borrow a cup of sugar from a neighbor. EGI-Engage built the tools and agreements to make that sharing easy, secure, and open to everyone — not just big universities, but also small companies and independent researchers. They created a kind of app store for scientific computing services, plus ways to move your work seamlessly between different cloud providers. Think of it as the Airbnb of supercomputing: matching people who need computing muscle with those who have spare capacity.

By the numbers
21,000+
researchers already supported by EGI infrastructure
59
consortium partners
25
countries in the network
8
Competence Centres linking users with services
69
total project deliverables produced
EUR 8,000,000
EU contribution to the project
The business problem

What needed solving

Companies and organizations running data-intensive workloads — genomics analysis, climate simulations, disaster modeling — face a brutal choice: invest millions in their own high-performance computing or wait months for access to overbooked university clusters. Smaller firms and research teams are often priced out entirely. There is no easy way to discover, compare, and access distributed computing resources across borders.

The solution

What was built

The project delivered a Service Registry and Marketplace prototype for discovering computing services, an Open Data Platform for sharing research data, VM relocation tools for moving workloads between cloud providers, and domain-specific demonstrators for biobank genomics, disaster simulation, ecological data processing, earth science, astronomy, and citizen science pattern recognition — 69 deliverables in total.

Audience

Who needs this

Cloud service providers building multi-cloud federation solutionsBiotech and pharmaceutical companies needing scalable genomics computingEnvironmental consultancies running large-scale simulation modelsNational research networks and data centers seeking interoperability toolsSMEs in data-intensive industries that cannot afford dedicated HPC infrastructure
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Cloud computing and IT services
enterprise
Target: Cloud service providers and IT infrastructure companies

If you are a cloud service provider struggling to offer federated multi-cloud solutions to research-intensive clients — this project developed a working prototype for relocating virtual machine instances between providers and a service registry and marketplace that lets users discover and access distributed computing resources across 25 countries. The VM relocation specification alone could save months of R&D on cross-provider portability.

Life sciences and biotech
mid-size
Target: Biobanks, genomics labs, and pharmaceutical R&D firms

If you are a biotech company running next-generation sequencing (NGS) workflows and struggling with the computing power needed for large-scale genomic analysis — this project built and evaluated a cloud environment specifically designed for biobank studies. The demonstrator ran real NGS use cases on federated cloud infrastructure, proving that sensitive biobank research can be done securely in shared environments without investing in dedicated hardware.

Environmental monitoring and disaster management
any
Target: Environmental consultancies and civil protection agencies

If you are an environmental consultancy or disaster mitigation agency needing massive computing power for simulation models — this project delivered working simulation portals for disaster mitigation scenarios and data flow tools for ecological observatories. With 59 partners across 25 countries, the platform provides ready-made access to computing resources that would otherwise require years and millions to build independently.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost a company to access these computing services?

The project built open-access infrastructure funded by EUR 8,000,000 in EU contributions and national investments. Access policies were specifically developed to lower barriers for SMEs and the 'long-tail of science.' Based on available project data, commercial pricing models were not the primary focus — the infrastructure operates through national grid initiatives rather than direct subscription fees.

Can this scale to handle enterprise-level workloads?

Yes. The underlying EGI infrastructure already supports over 21,000 researchers and spans 25 countries with 59 partner organizations. The project specifically expanded cloud and data services capabilities and built VM relocation between providers, which is a key feature for scaling workloads across multiple data centers.

What about intellectual property and licensing?

EGI-Engage was a publicly funded research project (RIA) coordinated by Stichting EGI, a not-for-profit foundation based in the Netherlands. The Open Science Commons vision emphasizes open access and shared ownership of knowledge. Based on available project data, outputs are designed for open reuse rather than proprietary licensing.

Is this technology ready for production use?

The project delivered 9 demonstrators and 69 total deliverables, including working prototypes of a Service Registry and Marketplace, an Open Data Platform, and cloud environments for biobank research. These were tested on real infrastructure but were designed as proof-of-concept systems rather than commercial-grade products.

How does this integrate with existing IT systems?

The project specifically focused on interoperability across e-Infrastructures. The VM relocation capability allows moving workloads between different cloud providers. The 8 Competence Centres each worked on integrating domain-specific applications into the shared infrastructure, covering fields from astronomy to earth sciences.

Is there ongoing support after the project ended?

The project ended in August 2017, but EGI.eu continues to operate as a not-for-profit foundation coordinating the EGI community. The infrastructure and services built during the project have been maintained through subsequent EGI initiatives. The EGI website (egi.eu) remains active for service inquiries.

What regulations or compliance standards does this meet?

The project operated within the European e-Infrastructure ecosystem and followed EU data governance requirements. The biobank cloud demonstrator specifically addressed secure handling of sensitive research data. Based on available project data, specific certifications like ISO 27001 were not explicitly mentioned in the deliverables.

Consortium

Who built it

The 59-partner consortium spans 25 countries but is heavily research-oriented: 26 research organizations and 20 universities make up 78% of partners, while only 4 industry players (7%) and 3 SMEs participated. The coordinator, Stichting EGI in the Netherlands, is a not-for-profit foundation — which signals this is infrastructure-for-science rather than a commercial product play. For a business looking to adopt these tools, the low industry ratio means the technology was validated primarily in academic settings, though the sheer scale of the network (21,000+ researchers) proves the infrastructure works at production level. The international spread across Europe, plus partners in the US, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, shows genuine global interoperability.

How to reach the team

Stichting EGI (Netherlands) — contact via egi.eu or use SciTransfer's matchmaking service

Order a report on this consortiumSee STICHTING EGI profile →
Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to access federated cloud computing for your data-intensive workloads? SciTransfer can connect you with the EGI team and help identify which services match your needs.

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