What we do
Each event is held in a relaxed atmosphere, covers a wide agenda and is punctuated by opportunities for you to mingle with other members over coffee and a 3 course lunch; all for a remarkably low annual membership fee. The agendas are actually compiled by listening to the current needs of the members, this way we ensure the content is always relevant. Some of the areas covered at recent events have been:
- IBM announcements
- Data security
- 24 x 7 Operations
- Infrastructure considerations
- Pervasive technologies
- Compliance management
- Information management tools
(A sample of previous agendas from earlier meetings is available from the Main Menu).
i-UG represents one of the very few opportunities to get community and technical information on the “i” platform without having to break the bank and be away from the office for extended periods.
Flagship events
Once a year we hold our “Flagship” event where we can attract IBM i users from outside our traditional geographical areas.
Previous flagship conferences include:
- International i-POWER Park Inn Northampton Conference (June 2022)
- International i-POWER (h)Hybrid Conference at The Mount Hotel in Wolverhampton (July 2021)
- International i-POWER (v) Virtual Conference (June 2020)
- International i-POWER – Milton Keynes (June 2019)
- International i-POWER – Milton Keynes (June 2018)
- International i-POWER – Milton Keynes (June 2017)
- International i-POWER – Wyboston Lakes (June 2016)
- International i-POWER – Wyboston Lakes (June 2015)
- International i-POWER – Old Windsor (September 2014)
- International POWER – Milton Keynes (November 2013)
- International POWER – Centre of London (November 2012)
- International POWER – Centre of London (November 2011)
- Power SHiFT – City of Manchester Stadium (October 2010)
- iFidelity – Manchester Conference Centre (April 2009)
- Scoring With Power – Old Trafford (October 2008)
i-UG in 2023
Until October 2010, i-UG – then known as NiSUG – was an entirely independant organisation and our members were primarily based in the North of England around the M62 corridoor. However in October 2010 we became affiliated with the biggest IBM user group in Europe – Common Europe (CE).
At the annual event in Windsor, 2014, NiSUG brought the CUA into the organisation and formed i-UG, now the only IBM i User Group inthe UK.
i-UG is now the official representative of Common Europe (CE) in the UK and as part of this affiliation, i-UG is now a national organisation available to companies and individuals throughout England, Wales and Scotland and Northern Ireland. This affiliation brings several benefits to the group:
As a member of CE, we have much more influence in the way IBM takes System “i”. This will be primarily via its Common Europe Advisory Council (CEAC) comprising representatives of each country. We also have greater access to high quality presenters from IBM in Rochester.
About us
The i-UG meets up to 4 times per year for events throughout the UK.
We offers members the opportunity to listen to top level speakers from: IBM, Business Partners, the vendor community and users themselves and gather real information to assist in key decision making about IT and business in general. From the AS/400 through the iSeries, on through System i and Power Systems, our members are kept up-to-date with IBM thinking and technology emergence that is relevant to their businesses.
Not for profit
Formed in 1993, i-UG (Formerley NiSUG and incorporating: the CUA, Common GB and Common UK), has been around nearly as long as the IBM i itself.
The i-UG is a not-for-profit organisation that provides educational conferences throughout the UK.
These events are funded through membership fees, sponsorship and any fees charged to non-members to attend our events.
Our members
i-UG members all have one thing in common – their companies depend on the IBM Power servers running the IBM i operating system (a.k.a. iSeries or AS/400) that run their businesses. They come from a wide range of industries and the size of their companies vary from quite small to large corporates. This range of membership adds great value to the networking that goes on between presentations. We also have roughly an equal number of vendors and end user companies. Some companies send a single delegate but some choose to send two or three. The choice is up to them.
Membership fees
We pride ourselves in providing extremely good value for money. Our members certainly think so and many have been with us since we started.
For more information on our 3 levels of membership and how to join, simply click here
i-UG documents
As i-UG is a Not For Profit Unincorporated Association we try to keep the rules of the organization to a minimum.
However we have a strong ethos within the group of Education, Information and Communication and we have adopted a number of documents and guidelines to protect this ethos. These describe how the group operates and what we expect from members, delegates, presenters & sponsors etc. Each of these documents is fully available to everyone for downloading at any time.
Meet the i-UG board
The faces behind our success
Mike Ryan
Colin Spofford
Steve Bradshaw
Steve Cast
What our members have to say
We love them
