Late last month Dell EMC announced the Elastic Data Platform, designed to augment big data deployments with scalability and stronger controls around user access. The news was jointly released not just by Dell EMC, but through two of its key partners: BlueData Inc. and BlueTalon Inc. Such partner-driven solutions have become expected in enterprise computing — how else can an industry manage the increasing complexities of data management?

“The partnership is actually the secret sauce as part of our sales cycle,” said Matt Maccaux (pictured, center), global big data practice lead at Dell EMC. “We’ve scoured the market and we’ve found partners that we work with and we trust.”

Maccaux visited theCUBE, SiliconANGLE’s mobile livestreaming studio, and spoke with host John Furrier (@furrier) during the recent BigData NYC event in New York City. He was joined by Carey James (pictured, right), vice president of alliances at BlueTalon, and Jason Schroedl (pictured, left), vice president of marketing at BlueData. They discussed key solutions offered by the new platform and the customer response.

Architecture that’s scalable and secure

The Elastic Data Platform combines Dell EMC’s infrastructure with BlueData’s cluster technology for Docker containers and BlueTalon’s access policies. The goal is to offer customers a flexible, scalable and highly secure cross-platform architecture.

“What you’re now seeing is that companies want diversity in the tools they utilize, but they don’t want that complication of having to deliver all those tools themselves,” James explained. “They’re looking for partners who can actually bring that ecosystem to the table.”

The operational word here is elastic. BlueData’s contribution involves its Elastic Private Instant Clusters, or EPIC, a patented technology that provides customers with the ability to spin-up clusters for Spark or Hadoop on Docker containers. “You can have this cloud-like experience on-premises, but you can also provide the ability to move those workloads,” Schroedl said. “It’s a new dynamic for big data.”

As Dell EMC and its partners navigate the ever-changing IT seas, the desire among customers for easily-deployed solutions that meet operational needs becomes even more apparent. That’s why a combined solution, such as the Elastic Data Platform, can cover a lot of bases in a short space of time.

“They realize that we’re not just there to sell them more kit; we can actually help solve their problems,” Maccaux said. “It is a game changer.”

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of BigData NYC 2017.

Photo: SiliconANGLE