Worldwide factory revenue for the high performance computing (HPC) technical server market decreased -9,6% in the first quarter of 2014 (1Q14) to $2,3-billion, down from $2,5-billion in the same period of 2013, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide High-Performance Technical Server QView. Unit shipments were relatively steady in the quarter, growing 0,4% year-over-year on shipments of 33 577 units.
Revenues in the high-end supercomputers segment (HPC systems sold for $500 000 and up) declined to $580 million, down -32,7% year-over-year. IDC forecasts that the supercomputers segment will see modest growth through the rest of 2014, but will expand at a healthy compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7,2% through 2018.
Following a recovery year in 2013, the lower half of the HPC market showed signs of, continued improvement in the divisional, departmental, and workgroup segments.
The divisional segment (HPC systems priced from $250 000 to $499 000) declined -2,6% year-over-year, while revenues for departmental systems (priced $100 000 to $249 000) grew by 0,6% and workgroup revenues (for systems priced below $100 000) advanced a healthy 11,4% over the same quarter in 2013.
“HPC technical server revenues are expected to grow at a healthy rate because of the crucial role they play in economic competitiveness as well as scientific progress,” says Earl Joseph, programme vice-president for technical computing at IDC.
“As the global race toward exascale computing fuels the high end of the market, more small and medium-sized businesses and research organizations are exploiting HPC servers for advanced simulations and high performance data analysis.”
IDC expects the overall HPC technical server market to grow at a healthy 7,4% yearly rate with revenues reaching $14,7-billion by 2018.
HP is the leading market vendor with 35% of HPC server market share. IBM is the second largest vendor with 23,1% market share. Dell maintained its strong third-place position with 17,2% of global revenue.
NEC (87,3%), Sugon (14,9%), and Dell (8,5%) all made strong year-over-year revenue gains in 1Q14. NEC’s growth was driven by its gains in the Supercomputers segment, while Sugon and Dell experienced growth in the Departmental, Divisional and Workgroup segments.