“The experiences of the past week – and indeed of last winter – have brought home to many that winter-related problems can impact significantly on business continuity,” says (right) Rob Hamilton, director of Abberdeen specialist IT company, Dynamic Edge Solutions which provides traditional IT support as well as cloud computing solutions.
 
“We’re seeing a marked increase in the number of inquiries from companies wanting to adopt ‘cloud computing’ solutions to overcome issues ranging from infrastructure failures to staff unable to travel to work.
 
“Cloud computing in essence facilitates home working and enables remote access to emails, data, voice/video communications and files. Crucially, it is a solution supported by two discrete data centres, so if for any reason one fails the other kicks in almost instantaneously to maintain service. For businesses and organisations, the solution means their work doesn’t come to a standstill when the traffic does."
 
“The options for businesses to provide remote working facilities for their personnel are growing all the time, so they can choose to tailor the systems to suit their needs," says Hamilton.

“Companies don’t need to leave themselves vulnerable to the operational damage a wintry blast can cause – and indeed the adoption of remote working practices greatly enhances their scope to take a far more flexible approach to service delivery throughout the year.
 
“Given availability of ever more elaborate video-conferencing facilities, there’s really no issue that can’t be overcome. In effect, you may be at home but you’re essentially sitting at your desk – everything can be available to you, and everyone you need to communicate with is within reach.”

Global ThinkGrid
Cloud computer technology could help firms remain operating throughout adverse weather conditions allowing enterprises to continue operating when snow affects employee commutes.

Rob Lovell, (left) CEO at ThinkGrid, which has an Edinburgh office among many, said businesses should look to the cloud during times of bad weather in order to keep productivity up.

"By giving employees cloud computing services such as hosted desktops and phones that can be accessed from anywhere in the world, organisations can ensure that workers are able to continue to keep working as normal even though they can't get to the office," he explained.

The comments come as heavy snow and freezing conditions across the UK threaten to cause chaos for commuters. Temperatures are expected to reach -20 degrees C in some areas of Scotland this week.

Lovell added: 'Cloud computing essentially removes barriers of the traditional office by allowing employees to work from anywhere, sharing and collaboration of data and applications. Cloud computing therefore removes the need to try commuting to work, when travelling conditions are disrupted."