Inauguration of the “Calcul and Cloud ISDM-MESO” Cluster at the University of Montpellier

[Press Release] - Published on April 30, 2025 in Press Room, Major Programs

On Wednesday, April 30, the University of Montpellier inaugurated its new Computing and Cloud Cluster at CINES on the Saint-Priest campus—a digital infrastructure dedicated to research that supports computing and cloud needs, in conjunction with its large-scale storage capabilities. This new digital facility is funded under the State-Region Plan Contract by the State, the Region, the Metropolis, and the University of Montpellier to the tune of 2.56 million euros. It is part of the Regional Data Center certified in Occitanie (Drocc).

In the presence of Pierre-André Durand, Prefect of the Occitanie Region and Prefect of Haute-Garonne; Michaël Delafosse, Mayor of Montpellier and President of Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole; Carole Drucker-Godard, Rector of the Occitanie Academic Region; Rector of the Montpellier Academy and Chancellor of the Universities, Khaled Bouabdallah, Deputy Rector for Higher Education, Research, and Innovation of the Occitanie Academic Region, Marc Sztulman, Regional Councilor for Digital Affairs, Philippe Augé, President of the University of Montpellier, Michel Robert, Director of the National Center for Higher Education Computing (Cines), and Anne Laurent, Vice President for Open Science and Research Data at the University of Montpellier, Director of the Montpellier Institute of Data Science (ISDM).

A favorable environment for the establishment of this cluster

Numerical computing solutions and the analysis of big data using artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms are at the heart of today’s scientific and technological advancements. The mesocenter led by the University of Montpellier within the Montpellier Institute of Data Science (ISDM) provides advanced solutions to all scientific communities.

As a result, more than 10,000 users and over 400 research laboratories use the ISDM-MESO mesocenter, as well as companies (such as BRLI and Predict Services for environmental risk prediction). Designed so that all communities can benefit from it, it is based on a model aimed at striking the right balance between streamlining and sharing equipment on the one hand, and customizing environments on the other. It thus serves not only experts who also use national and international equipment but also non-experts who have very limited access to this type of equipment, which can nevertheless significantly accelerate the production of highly valuable results.

The cluster will be named after Isabelle Olivieri (1957–2016), a renowned expert in population biology and mathematical modeling and an iconic figure in Montpellier’s scientific community.

“At a time when science and research are under attack in many countries, posing major risks to democracy, the Occitanie Region is establishing itself as a region that invests in the future of our citizens and our economy, thanks to our researchers. The creation of this cluster marks a decisive step in positioning Occitanie as a leading region in computing, data storage, and artificial intelligence. As an integral part of the Regional Data Center, this new facility exemplifies the successful partnership between academic research and industrial innovation, with very concrete applications for our residents, whether in the area of climate risk management—including improved flood risk forecasting—or in healthcare. This cluster contributes to the goal we collectively pursue through the “AI Alliance for Health” project, led by the University Hospital and the University of Montpellier, which aims to make the University Hospital the first national pilot site for the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare. “AI can be an opportunity when it is guided by public authorities for the benefit of human progress, ” said Carole Delga, President of the Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée Region.

“The ISDM-MESO is a strategic project for the Montpellier Metropolitan Area, at the intersection of research, innovation, and challenges in health and artificial intelligence. This project strengthens our position as a leading scientific hub, capable of quickly mobilizing all its stakeholders—local governments, universities, and businesses—around a shared vision. It demonstrates our ability to anticipate major transformations and to carry out high-impact projects, supported by increased funding and clear political will. Through the ISDM, Montpellier reaffirms its leading role in building scientific and technological sovereignty in the service of the common good,” Michaël Delafosse, Mayor of Montpellier and President of Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole.

“The inauguration of the ‘ISDM-MESO Computing and Cloud’ cluster at the University of Montpellier marks a crucial milestone in strengthening the research and innovation ecosystem in Occitanie. I would like to warmly commend the commitment and dedication of all those involved, whose vision and determination have made this state-of-the-art digital infrastructure a reality—a true catalyst for scientific excellence. At a time when digital computing solutions and artificial intelligence are key drivers, particularly in decision-making, this cutting-edge facility is an absolutely crucial tool. It offers our researchers an optimal working environment to explore the new frontiers of knowledge and meet the challenges of tomorrow, ” said Carole Drucker-Godard, Rector of the Occitanie Academic Region, Rector of the Montpellier Academy, and Chancellor of the Universities.

“It is with immense pride that we inaugurate the University of Montpellier’s new ISDM-MESO computing and cloud cluster, a state-of-the-art infrastructure serving our academic and scientific community. This facility, designed to meet growing demands for computing power, marks a decisive milestone for UM. This cluster is not merely a technological investment: it symbolizes our unwavering commitment to research, which is, and remains, a fundamental mission of our university. Montpellier has long been a hub of innovation, recognized for the excellence of its laboratories, the breadth of its partnerships, and its ability to foster interdisciplinary dialogue. Artificial intelligence, now at the heart of the major transformations we are undergoing, is a strategic priority for our institution. In many fields, AI is already driving numerous projects and opening up unprecedented opportunities. Thanks to this infrastructure, we are empowering our scientific community to tackle the challenges of the 21st century, and we are affirming UM’s role as a key player in progress, knowledge, and digital transformation, ” said Philippe Augé, President of the University of Montpellier.

Equipment that offers the best possible balance between performance and environmental impact

With this new equipment, the University of Montpellier—building on its reputation for excellence in research and education—is enhancing its ability to meet the needs of researchers, with a particular focus on minimizing its environmental impact.

Selected and configured under the direction of Alexandre Dehne Garcia, a research engineer at INRAE’s DipSO and the cornerstone of the ISDM-MESO mesocenter alongside Technical Director Jean-Luc Oms, a research engineer at the CNRS (LIRMM – Joint Research Unit at the University of Montpellier), the future machine, acquired from Lenovo—a recognized leader in the HPC sector—will feature approximately 10,000 AMD cores and NVIDIA H100 quad-GPU servers with “full Direct Water Cooling,” 2.8 petabytes of high-performance WekaIO storage, and interconnections via two 200Gb/s networks. This solution will complement the existing 15-petabyte high-quality mass storage solution already in place at the mesocenter, which has been the subject of several partnership agreements with research organizations for extensive use by scientific communities (CIRAD, INRAE, Inserm, IRD).

Projects requiring this infrastructure are widespread in Montpellier, both at the heart of mathematical and computational methods and, in particular, in interdisciplinary projects that utilize algorithms and artificial intelligence methods with a significant impact on the challenges of “Feeding, Healing, and Protecting.” Ranked highly in numerous rankings, and notably second in the world in the Shanghai Ranking’s ecology category, the University of Montpellier thus aims to reconcile scientific excellence with a commitment to reducing environmental impact. The facility will be housed at Cines, a national institution with three missions (high-performance computing, long-term archiving, and hosting), whose capabilities were recently recognized with the arrival of the Adastra supercomputer—the most powerful in France and ranked^third globally for its low environmental impact on the Green 500 list.  In late 2023, Cines secured funding from the Ministry of Higher Education and Research MESR) to both upgrade the electrical connections and enable a supply of warm water (32°C) to the SM1 machine room, where the new equipment will be housed. This will not only allow for the measurement of the equipment’s actual energy consumption but also significantly reduce the environmental impact by eliminating the need to cool water to low temperatures, as is currently the case.

The commitments and involvement of local communities alongside the University of Montpellier

This project was made possible thanks to the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders in planning the first phase of the 2021–2027 Regional Economic Cohesion Contract (CPER). As a result, the Montpellier Metropolitan Area has released its full contribution of €704,000. The Occitanie Region is contributing €900,000 to this project. The Region is actively supporting the University of Montpellier on all projects related to the Occitanie Regional Data Center (Drocc), and this equipment will help renew and strengthen the Drocc-Est service offering, for which the ISDM serves as the operational hub and lead for all stakeholders in Eastern Occitanie (Drocc-Est HPC Computing Services, Drocc-East Storage, and Research Cloud Research ). The State is contributing €606,000 through the 2022 (€300,000) and 2023 (€306,000) CPER funding cycles. The University of Montpellier, for its part, has invested €350,000 in this project and is the primary contributor to the mesocenter’s hosting costs.