Cloud Computing 1. Need and Potential According to Martson [2010], “Cloud computing is here to stay.” If companies in the construction industry are unable or unwilling to move to the cloud they will be left behind and replaced by more modern ones. The cloud provides a potential means for performing the same work in a more efficient and cost effective manner. 2. Background and Gaps The cost of computing to a company is increasing dramatically despite computers becoming less expensive and more powerful every year. This increase is a result of the amount of computing and computing power required to remain competitive in today’s market. The cloud is poised to change the way that information technology works and is worked with by drastically reducing the cost of computing. As a result, it is expected to become a $150 billion industry over the next two years. (Marston, 2010) Cloud computing is a natural progression technology infrastructure. Mainframes were eventually phased out as client-server systems were adopted and the same will likely happen between servers and the cloud (Zissis, 2010). Cloud computing consists of 4 different groups of people: the consumers, the providers, the enablers and the regulators. The consumers pay for the use of the cloud from the providers. The providers own and operate the clouds. They are responsible for all upgrades to the cloud as well as for the software being used on the cloud. Enablers, as the name entails, enable the use of a cloud by providing the infrastructure and any specialized software. Regulators control what the consumers, providers and enablers are and are not allowed to do. (Martson, 2010) According to a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis performed by Martson et. al. [2010], some of the strengths of cloud computing are: a company’s computing power can be as dynamic as their computing needs innovative solutions are only available through the cloud (i.e. facebook.com is a cloud solution to the problem of social networking) The biggest weakness is: a company’s nature to want physical control over the storage of their data The biggest opportunities are: providing small businesses and third world countries cheap access to significant computing power cloud computing is a greener solution to modern technological needs The threats that should be resolved are: perceived notion that cloud data is insecure the fear that cloud companies will drastically increase their rates once companies become dependent on them Currently, the construction industry is not focusing on how it can best utilize cloud computing. Cloud computing is still in its infancy and the large majority of the attention surrounding it is focused on the more obviously applicable industries, such as information technology. 3. State of the Art As cloud computing becomes more established, the state of the art will advance. At its current state, cloud computing is still trying to overcome some, not necessarily deserved, preconceptions. The biggest fear potential users have is that their data will not be secure (Martson, 2010). Zissis and Lekkas (2010) address the issue of security and found that cloud computing can maintain confidentiality and availability of data. In order to achieve this security there needs to be a level of trust given to a third party. Cloud security should be assigned to a third party in much the same way that the security of a desktop computer is maintained by third party anti-virus software. There is a framework set in place to aid companies in deciding if cloud computing is the correct for them. It takes into account aspects like: size of IT resources, size of customer base, peak data usage vs. average data usage, sensitivity of the data, etc. (Misra, 2010). It is a very simple model but can be extremely useful in determining the feasibility of using cloud computing within certain sectors of the construction industry. 4. Recommended Path Forwards There is great potential for cloud computing to impact the construction industry. In order for it to become common practice, a framework for implementing it given the specific requirements and restraints of the construction industry should be developed. 5. References Martson, S., Li, Z., Bandyopadhyay, S., Zhang, J., Anand, G. (2010). “Cloud computing – The business perspective.” Decision Support Systems. pp. 176-189. Misra, S.C., Mondal, A. (2010). “Identification of a company’s suitability for the adoption of cloud computing and modelling its corresponding Return on Investment.” Mathematical and Computer Modelling. pp. 504-521. Zissis, D., Lekkas, D. (2010). “Addressing cloud computing security issues.” Future Generation Computer Systems. pp. 583-592.