Lammert Vinke and Bart Turk from Info Support on ECOFED: “It’s unwise to build an entire environment on a single technology stack”

Alongside project lead TNO, four organisations are working together within the ECOFED consortium to develop an open and federated cloud. Info Support is the largest implementation partner. “Reducing dependence on American hyperscalers matters for several reasons. Risk mitigation is one of them.”

Lammert Vinke, Managing Director of Info Support explains. The Dutch family-owned company has been operating for over 40 years and has built a strong track record in developing mission-critical IT solutions across a wide range of sectors. It runs its own data centre but also uses American hyperscalers. “We’re now seeing customers actively raising questions about digital sovereignty, but that was very different just two years ago. Back then, we still had to explain why we consider it irresponsible to build a mission-critical environment entirely on a single vendor’s technology stack.”

That awareness began to grow after the major CrowdStrike outage in the summer of 2024, which affected around 8.5 million Windows devices worldwide and caused widespread disruption. Hospitals had to postpone operations, airports shut down, and banks couldn’t process payments. Vinke finds this hard to accept: “We seem far too willing to accept that when one technology fails, a large portion of services is immediately impacted. Yet this risk can be significantly reduced by avoiding full standardisation on a single stack and instead deliberately introducing diversity into your IT landscape. That spread makes organisations far more resilient and less vulnerable.”

Matching Ease of Use

Bart Turk, Technology and Innovation Manager at Info Support, fully agrees. “Now that digital sovereignty is high on the agenda, there are frequent calls to build a European hyperscaler. Proponents often assume that a federated cloud can’t match the ease of use and level of innovation of a fully integrated cloud based on a single technology stack. That assumption doesn’t hold. Delivering the same level of usability is indeed a significant challenge, which is exactly why it’s a core focus of the ECOFED project. We’re confident it can be achieved. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have joined.”

When it comes to innovation, Turk points out that economic principles consistently show that competition accelerates progress. “Hyperscalers are often seen as highly innovative, but given their sheer scale, their pace of innovation isn’t always as strong as it appears. We believe that combining the strengths of multiple technology companies and areas of expertise will drive faster innovation. Diversity isn’t a limitation. It’s the engine of progress.”

Investing in Europe

Diversity also presents an economic opportunity for Europe, Vinke argues. “At present, around 70% of Europe’s data centre spending goes to American companies. That shows how much potential there is to invest more within Europe and strengthen our own economy. It fuels innovation and makes it easier to attract top talent. By choosing European technology providers, we create a positive dynamic in which growth and development reinforce each other.”

That’s exactly the shift Vinke hopes to accelerate through ECOFED. “Right now, a large share of Europe’s data centre budget flows to US companies. Economically, that’s a missed opportunity. At the same time, it weakens the innovation capacity of European tech firms, making them less attractive employers for highly skilled specialists. That creates a downward spiral.”

ECOFED, he believes, can help reverse that trend. “Dependence on a small number of American and Chinese providers introduces real risks. Given our experience, we believe Info Support has a responsibility to take a leading role in developing a viable alternative. At the same time, participation in pioneering projects like this makes us a more attractive employer, helping us attract and retain talent. Our people genuinely enjoy contributing, and we’re able to make a substantial impact. That’s because we combine deep technical expertise with strong enterprise capabilities, such as project governance, stakeholder management and structured delivery. ECOFED brings all of that together.”

Engaging Customers

Turk welcomes the growing attention around ECOFED. He’s starting to see early interest from customers who want to understand what a federated cloud entails and what it could offer them. “That’s a positive development. Even if we succeed in delivering a protocol that truly connects different technology stacks across providers, it will only have value if there’s market adoption. With so many voices advocating for a single European cloud, it’s important that we present an alternative perspective.”