Leaders at the U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), in Colorado Springs, Colo., needed computers to process emerging threats. They found a solution with PC blades from ClearCube Technology in Austin, Texas.
NORAD staffers will use the computers in the new command center in the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station (CMAFS) just outside Colorado Springs. The facility is the command and control center for the mountain, aggregating information from different analysis teams and providing one decision point.
CMAFS is an information-collection operation for a worldwide system of satellites, radars, and other sensors that provide early warning of a missile, air, or space threat to North America. The new computers will help officers process real-time threat information more quickly.
“We’re one-third of a mile behind granite and clearly security is our primary concern. Prior to using ClearCube, end users would literally lock their hard drives in safes before leaving each day. Now, having the blades in a central location away from the floor where top-secret information is being processed helps us reduce security concerns immensely,” says Garland Garcia, network chief at CMAFS’s Network Control Center. “With PC Blades we can fix at least 80 percent of our PC problems remotely, keeping IT staff out of classified work centers.”
NORAD has been using PC Blades in its various intelligence-gathering areas since 2001. This new deployment is in the command center where general officers receive real-time information on potential security threats in North American airspace. For more information, see www.clearcube.com.
