How to Maximize ROI with HPC Resources, With Real Examples

By Ian Mark

This article explains how enterprises can maximize return on investment from HPC infrastructure by implementing intelligent workload orchestration across hybrid cloud environments. You’ll see real-world results from three organizations that achieved 3-4x scaling improvements, 20x faster provisioning and mission-critical agility through optimized HPC management.

Cloud HPC spending is rising across enterprises. For many organizations, increased cloud costs haven’t translated into proportional increases in computational throughput, faster time-to-insight or accelerated innovation.

The problem isn’t cloud itself. It’s inefficient resource management across your entire HPC ecosystem. Whether you’re running workloads on-premises, in the cloud or across hybrid environments, unoptimized resource allocation leads to three costly outcomes: cloud overspending, inefficient utilization of existing infrastructure and hindered innovation due to limited or delayed access to HPC resources.

The solution lies in intelligent workload orchestration, which is where automated systems dynamically allocate computational tasks across on-premises and cloud resources based on workload requirements, cost constraints and performance targets. A key mechanism enabling this is cloud bursting, which is the ability to automatically extend on-premises workloads into cloud resources during peak demand, then release that capacity when demand subsides.

This cloud elasticity unlocks a primary benefit of hybrid HPC: the ability to draw from a single cloud or multiple cloud providers simultaneously, giving organizations the flexibility to route workloads to whichever environment best meets their performance, cost or compliance requirements at any given moment.

Organizations using advanced HPC management tools to optimize resource allocation across their entire infrastructure—cloud and on-premises—are seeing quantifiable returns that directly address these pain points.

Maximizing efficiency: Smart scheduling and dynamic cloud scaling

The most immediate ROI opportunity for most enterprises lies in cloud cost optimization. As HPC workloads scale, many organizations discover that rigid infrastructure approaches can easily lead to overspending.

Intelligent workload management addresses these issues by enabling seamless cloud bursting across on-premises and cloud resources, ensuring you only pay for what you use while maintaining the computational capacity to meet peak demands. Importantly, this elasticity can be paired with governance controls such as spending limits, security policies and compliance rules so that workloads only burst into cloud resources within boundaries the organization has defined.

Real-world example: Litens Automotive Group achieved 3-4x scaling with cloud flexibility

Litens Automotive Group specializes in advanced simulation and testing of new products. As their computational demands grew, they faced a strategic decision: build and manage additional on-premises HPC infrastructure or adopt a hybrid approach (maintaining on-premises infrastructure with access to cloud HPC resources) that could flex with their variable workload requirements.

“We have had several times this year where we did need to scale really quickly in terms of the amount of parallel computing power,” explained Gianmarc Coppola, Ph.D., Engineering Manager at Litens Automotive Group.

To tackle this challenge, the team decided to use Siemens HPCWorks to burst on-premises workloads into cloud resources during peak demand. Engineers continued submitting jobs through their existing tools and workflows without any change to their day-to-day process, while HPCWorks automatically determined whether each workload ran on-premises or in the cloud.

Results achieved:

3-4x computational scaling: The company was able to scale rapidly on a short-turnaround, which would have been impossible with local resources alone.

Cost efficiency: As Dr. Coppola noted, “if for whatever reason you don’t use it for 6 months, you’re not paying for something that is sitting there idle”

Performance validation: Access to cloud-based HPC resources also allowed Litens Automotive Group the ability to benchmark cloud versus on-premises performance for optimal workload placement

The hybrid approach delivered both technical and business value. Litens maintained their on-premises infrastructure for baseline workloads while accessing cloud resources for peak demand, eliminating both the capital expense of over-provisioned local infrastructure and the ongoing costs of underutilized capacity.

“The cloud enabled us to do this in a very effective and seamless manner,” Dr. Coppola notes. They specifically appreciated that it was low risk from a business perspective, providing the flexibility to scale computational power precisely when needed without long-term infrastructure commitments.

Accelerating innovation by removing barriers and delays to HPC access

Beyond cost savings and infrastructure efficiency, the most significant ROI from HPC optimization often comes from a different source: empowering your engineers to fully capitalize on HPC resources.

When engineers spend time waiting for compute resources or wrestling with infrastructure management, they’re not doing what you hired them to do, which is innovate, design and solve complex problems. This innovation bottleneck creates hidden costs that dwarf infrastructure expenses:

Extended wait times: Engineers queuing for resources, delaying critical project milestones

Context switching: Lost productivity as teams shift between projects while waiting for compute capacity

Infrastructure overhead: Engineers and IT staff managing job submissions, monitoring queues and troubleshooting resource allocation instead of focusing on core work

Delayed time-to-market: Product development cycles stretched by computational bottlenecks

Intelligent workload orchestration directly addresses these productivity drains by providing faster resource access and simplified management, freeing your people — your most valuable asset — to focus on innovation rather than infrastructure. Critically, this process is transparent to end users, meaning engineers and researchers continue submitting jobs through their familiar tools and workflows while the orchestration layer automatically routes each workload to the appropriate resource (on-premises or cloud) without requiring any change in user behavior.

Real-world example: University research environment cuts node spin-up time by 20x

A major university research environment faced a classic innovation bottleneck. During peak demand periods, researchers needed rapid access to computational resources to maintain research momentum. However, manually spinning up compute nodes took approximately 45 minutes.

The university also needed infrastructure that could automatically scale based on actual demand, ensuring resources were available during high-utilization periods without paying for idle capacity during quieter times.

The solution: The university implemented HPCWorks Navops with customizable automation rules and seamless integration with HPCWorks PBS Professional.

Results achieved:

20x faster node provisioning: Spin-up time reduced from ~45 minutes to just 1-2 minutes

One-click scaling: New nodes added to the cluster with a single click instead of manual configuration

Automatic resource optimization: Nodes automatically terminate after jobs complete, eliminating idle resource waste

Enhanced researcher productivity: Near-instant access to compute resources keeps research teams in flow state

The impact extends beyond infrastructure metrics. When researchers can access compute resources in 1-2 minutes instead of 45, they maintain focus and momentum. When IT staff can provision resources with one click instead of lengthy manual processes, they can focus on strategic initiatives rather than repetitive infrastructure tasks.

This directly counters the innovation bottleneck: instead of computational infrastructure constraining what your teams can accomplish, it becomes an enabler that accelerates their work.

Empowering teams with the computational resources needed for today’s transformative technologies and complex challenges

The ultimate ROI from HPC optimization isn’t just about reducing costs or improving HPC access, it’s about unlocking transformational business outcomes that weren’t previously possible.

Tools like enterprise data analytics, simulation, AI and Digital Twins can provide astonishing competitive advantages for many businesses, but they require a staggering amount of compute power for their full efficacy. A recent study reported that for every dollar invested in HPC generated $47 in profit, but that’s only true for organizations that make the resources accessible, scalable and aligned with business needs.

Real-world example: Johnson & Johnson expands compute power 3x for critical drug discovery

Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, faced exactly this same challenge. Their existing HPC infrastructure had reached its limits just as computational demands for critical research, including COVID-19 vaccine development, were accelerating dramatically.

The organization needed to support rapidly expanding drug discovery workloads in a complex multi-tenant environment while maintaining compliance with stringent pharmaceutical industry regulations (GxP).

To address this need, Janssen upgraded to HPCWorks Grid Engine and deployed HPCWorks Navops to manage complex cloud deployments, creating a simplified, automated and extensible HPC infrastructure. The solution provided the cloud elasticity needed to rapidly scale research workloads across environments while maintaining the governance controls required in a regulated pharmaceutical setting, including GxP compliance, security policies and policy-driven workload placement.

Results achieved:

3x computational capacity: After the transition, their clusters could run at three times the size of the previous implementation

Removed scalability limits: Infrastructure that can grow dynamically to meet research demands

Rapid cluster deployment: Template-based approach enables quick creation of additional clusters as needed

Mission-critical agility: Flexibility to tackle urgent events like COVID-19 at enterprise scale

“The HPCWorks Grid Engine and HPCWorks Navops solutions enabled us to scale in the cloud and grow our HPC infrastructure to support critical science and research, including COVID-19 vaccine development,” says Martin Dellwo, Manager of Advanced Computing, Janssen R&D.

The business impact extends far beyond infrastructure metrics. When computational capacity becomes a strategic enabler rather than a constraint, organizations can accelerate time-to-market for life-saving therapeutics, respond rapidly to shifting market needs and better support innovation. The Janssen deployment demonstrates that cloud elasticity and governance are not competing priorities, but that organizations can scale dynamically across cloud environments while maintaining full control over cost, security and compliance.

Meanwhile, intuitive user portals and automated orchestration ensure that engineers and researchers can run complex workloads without IT bottlenecks, which puts computational power directly in the hands of those driving innovation.

Organizations achieving the highest ROI from HPC investments share three characteristics:

1. Hybrid flexibility: They seamlessly burst workloads between on-premises and cloud resources, leveraging single or multiple cloud providers on demand
2. Intelligent orchestration: Automated workload management eliminates manual overhead and enforces governance policies like cost controls, security and compliance across every environment
3. Engineer-first access: Sub-2-minute resource provisioning keeps teams in flow state without requiring any change to existing tools or job submission workflows

Earning a 47-fold ROI per dollar you invest in HPC is achievable, but only when infrastructure enables rather than constrains innovation.

Learn more about Siemens HPC and cloud solutions →

FAQ: Maximizing ROI from HPC investments with Siemens HPCWorks

Understanding HPC ROI and Optimization

What is the typical ROI for HPC investments?

A recent study shows that for every dollar invested in HPC, organizations generate approximately $47 in profit, but only when HPC resources are accessible, scalable and aligned with business needs. The key to achieving this ROI lies in intelligent workload orchestration that optimizes resource allocation across your entire infrastructure, both cloud and on-premises.

Why isn’t increased cloud HPC spending translating into better results for many organizations?

The problem isn’t cloud itself, but inefficient resource management across your entire HPC ecosystem. Unoptimized resource allocation leads to three costly outcomes: cloud overspending, inefficient utilization of existing infrastructure and hindered innovation due to limited or delayed access to HPC resources. Organizations need intelligent workload orchestration to maximize the value of their HPC investments.

What are the hidden costs of inefficient HPC resource management?

Beyond infrastructure expenses, inefficient HPC management creates significant hidden costs including extended wait times for engineers queuing for resources, lost productivity from context switching between projects, infrastructure overhead from manual job management and delayed time-to-market as product development cycles stretch due to computational bottlenecks. These innovation bottlenecks often dwarf direct infrastructure costs.

Cloud cost optimization

How can I reduce cloud HPC costs without sacrificing performance?

Intelligent workload management enables seamless scaling across on-premises and cloud resources, ensuring you only pay for what you use while maintaining computational capacity to meet peak demands. For example, Litens Automotive Group achieved 3-4x computational scaling using Siemens HPCWorks to extend their on-premises HPC into cloud resources only when needed, avoiding both capital expense of over-provisioned local infrastructure and ongoing costs of underutilized capacity.

What is a hybrid HPC approach and why does it matter for ROI?

A hybrid HPC approach maintains on-premises infrastructure for baseline workloads while accessing cloud resources for peak demand. This eliminates the capital expense of over-provisioned local infrastructure and the ongoing costs of underutilized capacity. As Litens Automotive Group demonstrated, this approach is “low risk from a business perspective” and provides flexibility to scale computational power precisely when needed without long-term infrastructure commitments.

How quickly can cloud resources scale to meet sudden demand spikes?

With intelligent orchestration tools like HPCWorks, organizations can scale rapidly on short turnaround. Litens Automotive Group achieved 3-4x computational scaling when they needed to scale quickly, which would have been impossible with local resources alone. The key advantage is that if you don’t use it for some time, you’re not paying for expensive HPC infrastructure that is sitting there idle.

Accelerating innovation and productivity

How does HPC resource access impact engineer productivity?

When engineers spend time waiting for compute resources or managing infrastructure, they’re not innovating, designing or solving complex problems. Faster resource access and simplified management free your people (your most valuable asset) to focus on innovation rather than infrastructure. A major university reduced node spin-up time from 45 minutes to just 1-2 minutes, enabling researchers to maintain focus and momentum instead of losing productivity during wait times.

What is the innovation bottleneck in HPC environments?

The innovation bottleneck occurs when computational infrastructure constrains what teams can accomplish rather than enabling their work. This manifests as extended wait times for resources, context switching between projects, infrastructure management overhead and delayed time-to-market. Intelligent workload orchestration transforms infrastructure from a constraint into an enabler that accelerates innovation.

How can automation improve HPC resource provisioning?

Automation dramatically reduces provisioning time and eliminates manual configuration errors. One university research environment achieved 20x faster node provisioning (from ~45 minutes to 1-2 minutes) and enabled one-click scaling instead of manual configuration. Automatic resource optimization also ensures nodes terminate after jobs complete, eliminating idle resource waste while maintaining researcher productivity.

Enterprise-scale HPC management

Can HPC optimization support mission-critical workloads in regulated industries?

Yes. Janssen Pharmaceuticals (Johnson & Johnson) deployed HPCWorks Grid Engine and HPCWorks Navops to support drug discovery workloads in a complex multi-tenant environment while maintaining compliance with stringent pharmaceutical industry regulations (GxP). They achieved 3x computational capacity and the flexibility to tackle urgent events like COVID-19 vaccine development at enterprise scale.

How does intelligent workload orchestration enable transformational business outcomes?

Intelligent orchestration makes transformative technologies like enterprise data analytics, simulation, AI and Digital Twins accessible and effective by providing the computational power they require. When computational capacity is readily available and structured cost-effectively, organizations can accelerate time-to-market, respond rapidly to shifting market needs and support innovation at scale, as demonstrated by Janssen’s ability to support critical COVID-19 vaccine development.

What are the key capabilities needed for enterprise HPC optimization?

Enterprise HPC optimization requires seamless scaling across on-premises and cloud resources, customizable automation rules, rapid resource provisioning, automatic resource optimization to eliminate waste, template-based cluster deployment for quick scaling and intuitive user portals that put computational power directly in the hands of engineers and researchers without IT bottlenecks.

Siemens HPCWorks solutions

What is Siemens HPCWorks and how does it optimize HPC investments?

Siemens HPCWorks is an advanced HPC management platform that enables intelligent workload orchestration across cloud, on-premises and hybrid environments. It provides seamless integration between on-premises and cloud resources, automated scaling, rapid provisioning and simplified management. In doing so, HPCWorks addresses the three core ROI challenges of cloud overspending, infrastructure inefficiency and innovation barriers.

How does HPCWorks Navops improve cloud HPC management?

HPCWorks Navops provides customizable automation rules, seamless integration with HPCWorks PBS Professional, one-click node scaling and automatic resource termination after job completion. Organizations using Navops have achieved 20x faster node provisioning, eliminated manual configuration overhead and optimized resource utilization by automatically scaling based on actual demand.

What results have organizations achieved with HPCWorks Grid Engine?

Organizations using HPCWorks Grid Engine have achieved significant scalability improvements. Janssen Pharmaceuticals expanded their computational capacity 3x, removed previous scalability limits and gained the ability to rapidly deploy additional clusters using template-based approaches. This enabled them to support critical research including COVID-19 vaccine development while maintaining regulatory compliance in a pharmaceutical environment.