Free Annual Data & Analytics Event
Last week I had the chance to attend the Big Data London conference and exhibition in Olympia. There was a great atmosphere: the first in-person conference, loads of stands and speakers, great content and interesting topics.
There were a number of interesting talks and keynotes presentations, three of which will be summarised in this article (view the full list of seminars here).
McLaren efficiency using Alteryx
Edward Green, Head of Commercial Technology at McLaren Formula 1, in his talk explained how Analytics Software can be used to pursue car build efficiency.
The McLaren Telemetry Data pipeline is made of three pillars: Cloud (public and hybrid), Analytics AI/ML and Trackside. At all of these stages, there is a need to store, manipulate and analyse big data to support quick decision making.
McLaren's current storage need is in excess of 100TB due to the importance of using historical data in order to build strong data models to support business decisions.
What data is captured? Each car component contains data (over 25,000 separate parts and components), which needs to be tested and analysed before the race on Sunday. Components are improved, changed, modified based on several factors such as: Live Simulator Data, Live Race Data, Live Weather and Historic Data. Alteryx enables Digital Manufacturing in the way McLaren plans, produces, and develops their cars. Alteryx Automation and Modelling also enables manufacturing optimisation and cost efficiencies.
Data and Analytics supports Race Day Logistics and decision-making. Alteryx allows automated simulations of the equipment and car parts needed, which are vital for the Race Engineers and Drivers.
More info on McLaren's use cases of Alteryx.
Accenture Cloud Challenges Tips
Jeffrey Nogosek - Google Cloud Practice Lead at Accenture UKI gave a presentation on the Migrations to the Cloud: Overcoming Myths and Enabling Data Driven Transformation during a Blueprint Keynote.
The journey to the Cloud often starts with some challenges that can see as main players the Business and IT. One of the biggest challenges of cloud-based data & analytics solution is often a Security challenge: Lack of trust in cloud security is the biggest prohibitor to cloud adoption.
Recommendations on how to overcome the Security challenges:
- Trust: Understand concerns with Cloud Adoption
- Simplify the solution
- Work the cloud security from the Data ingestion, Data processing to the Data Consumption solutions
- Be realistic on the data needed
- Additional security where necessary
Another great topic brought by Jeff is related to the Platform Migration approach, which is often use case driven (existing use cases needs to be transferred into the new solutions) rather than capabilities driven (existing or acquired). Sometimes use cases that works well on-premises might not necessarily work as expected in the cloud. The capability driven approach can not only test the new value of the adopted solution but also build new capabilities within the organisation.
Deutsche Bank Data & Innovation
Peter Hung - Assistant Vice President R&D at Deutsche Bank (DB) spoke about Data and Innovation in the Financial Industry.
DB, as many other organisations at the Conference, is very interested in Data & Innovation to transform the Bank into a data-driven organisation.
In large organisations, such as DB, it is important to find new ways to innovate and find the right solutions for each use case. A few initiatives mentioned:
- Innovate using Cloud Solutions
- Upskilling the team through Hackathons and Certifications
- Understand Artificial Intelligence ethics and safety
Impressions
I am glad I had the opportunity to learn from 130 leading technology vendors and consultants, 180+ speakers, participating in open theatres in 8 parallel sessions, all showcasing real-world use-cases and panel debates. The sessions were in a hybrid format with the Cloud Theatre live streamed and the other 3 theatres discussing live: Governance & Privacy, Customer & Marketing Analytics, Modern Analytics, AI & MLOPS, Data Driven, Dataops, Fast Data and the Keynote Theatre.
The event also included the Blueprint London event focused on how to build a modern cloud-native architecture. The sessions covered topics such as: Multi-Cloud, DevOps, IoT, Containerisation, Observability, Modern Software Architecture, Modern Software Development.
Very interesting demos, showcases and conversations with Alteryx, Dremio, Fivetran, Snowplow and Snowflake. A full list of all sponsors and exhibitors is available on the Big Data London Website.
I am glad I had the chance to join the conference in-person and I had the chance to get to know new products and ideas.
It was also great to see so much content around Blueprint as organisational change that is needed when adding new tools and technologies to an enterprise. Overall it was a wonderful experience!
Thank you for reading through this article, hope you find it insightful. Feel free to post any comments and feedback.