EMC, the data management and storage company, said on Monday that it would pay $2.25 billion for Isilon Systems, a Seattle company that provides network storage.

Isilon makes so-called scale-out network attached storage, a type of storage that can start small and grow fast — reaching up to 10 petabytes — without disrupting a network.

IDC estimates the market for Isilon’s type of storage will be worth $6 billion in 2014.

EMC said that with its acquisition of Isilon, it would be better able to provide storage infrastructure for private and public cloud environments, with a focus on so-called big data, like gene sequencing, online streaming and oil and natural gas seismic studies.

“The unmistakable waves of cloud computing and ‘Big Data’ are upon us,” said Joe Tucci, head of EMC. “Customers are looking for new ways to store, protect, secure and add intelligence to the vast amounts of information they will accumulate over the next decade.”

The company stuck to its outlook for the year, anticipating $16.9 billion in consolidated revenue for the period.

One of EMC’s partners, Dell, recently made an unsuccessful bid for 3Par, only to lose to Hewlett-Packard. EMC has seen its revenue from Dell decline in recent years, and the announcement on Monday looks like a strategic move toward income it can count on.