Newsgroups: comp.parallel,comp.sys.super
From: cliffc@fujitsu.com (Clifford Chen)
Subject: Fujitsu Product Announcement
Organization: Fujitsu America, Inc.
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 1995 18:36:40 GMT
Message-ID: <3hrg81$24g@fujitsui.fujitsu.com>

Subject: FUJITSU HAS VECTOR-PARALLEL PRODUCT WITH SUPERCOMPUTER PERFORMANCE 

  San Jose, Calif. -- Fujitsu America Inc. announced today a computer line
ranging from entry-level, single-processor vector servers to large
16-processor scientific data-center systems. The new line, the VPP300 Series,
is especially focused on the entry-level VX models designed for very high-
performance, departmental-level vector server requirements. With these new
models, scientific users will have the benefits of supercomputer power at a
workstation-level price/performance ratio.

  "These products meet customer needs for scalable, high-performance vector
systems in a distributed environment," said Thomas Miller, vice president
for Fujitsu America's SuperComputer Group. The entry-level VX models offer
performance capabilities at less than $200,000 per gigaflop (one billion
floating-point operations per second) including systems, software and
compliers. This represents a breakthrough price in supercomputing, with
a price/performance ratio that is 1.5 to five times better than competitive
products.

  Major features and benefits of the new products are:

  o Scalable Architecture -- The VPP300 Series utilizes a scalable vector-
    parallel architecture. The products can be configured from one processing
    element (PE) to 16 PEs, representing a performance range of between 2.2
    to 35.2 gigaflops. Users can choose the most suitable configuration for
    their needs today and field upgrade the system as their situation
    changes. This scalability protects users' investment in hardware and
    software and allows them to expand their systems as their needs change.

  o Advanced Performance -- The VPP300 Series employs ultra-fast, highly
    integrated CMOS LSI technology for superior performance, low price,
    reduced size and low operating costs. The single CPU performance of 2.2
    gigaflops is at least five times more powerful than any other offering.

  o Open Systems Support -- The products support industry standards. The
    operating system which is based on UNIX System V Release 4 was developed
    by adding high-performance supercomputing features such as parallel
    processing and enhanced compiler features. The compiler conforms to
    Fortran90 standards.

    Fujitsu has developed its own performance tool called Analyser. In
    addition, tools include an interactive parallelization software product,
    FORGE, which was developed by Applied Parallel Research of Placerville,
    California. Standard interfaces such as SCSI and Wide SCSI 2 have been
    adopted for I/O. Networking support includes Fiber Distributed Data
    Interface (FDDI), High Performance Parallel Interface Channel (HIPPI)
    and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM). This strong support for industry
    standards gives users increased flexibility in interfacing with other
    hardware and software.

  o Large Memory Capacity -- The VPP300 has up to two gigabytes of storage
    per PE with a systems maximum of 32 gigabytes. The large memory capacity
    allows users to solve more complex programs and protect their substantial
    investments in vector-software assets. The memory capacity enhances 
    I/O utilization, allows for efficient parallelization and speeds up
    processing.

  o Compact Size -- The entry-level VX models can easily be installed in
    office and departmental environments, either as stand-alone units or
    integrated into existing workstation installations. The product has a
    footprint of only 6.4 square feet. The turn-key system is air-cooled and
    plugs into a standard 220-volt electrical outlet.

  The VPP300 Series comes with the basic software package (UNIX, Fortran90,
C and standard tools) pre-installed, so that the products can be operational
the day of installation.

  The new product line is compatible with software from Fujitsu's VPP500
supercomputer. To meet projected customer needs, Fujitsu is porting
application programs mostly in the fields of seismic processing, crash-
worthiness analysis, structural and vibration analysis, fluid dynamics,
computational chemistry and electro-magnetic analysis. About 50 applications
are being ported and will be available in the second half of 1995.

  The entry-level market is the departmental applications that require vector
performance. For example, as part of this announcement, Fujitsu America
announced the availability of a 3D Post Stack Depth Migration program from
3DGEO, a Palo Alto, California-based software developer. 3DGEO has ported the
program to the VPP architecture and interfaced the software to ProMAX, a
highly respected software application developed by Advance Geophysical
(Englewood, Colorado) for seismic processing in the petroleum industry. The
result is that the Post Stack program can now run up to 10 times faster than
by traditional means.

  The VPP300 Series is expected to be ready for demonstrations and benchmark
testing in the third quarter of this year, with customer shipments starting
in the fourth quarter. The products will be available from authorized VARs
and systems integrators, as well as directly from Fujitsu America.

  For more information, contact Tom Miller of Fujitsu America at 408/456-7406
or email him at: <tomm@fujitsu.fai.com>.

-- 
Clifford Chen          cliffc@fujitsu.fai.com      (408) 756-7152
SuperComputing GrouFujitsu America, Inc.       San Jose, CA


