August 9th reminds us of an incredible journey and the great achievements that we have made as a Nation.
Since 1965, our Singaporean spirit has persevered amongst economic uncertainty and fluctuating markets, remaining resilient and always rising to the occasion. In a competitive global market place, we, as Singaporeans have truly set ourselves apart as a regional and international powerhouse. An achievement we all proudly share!
But in order for businesses to keep moving forward and to stay ahead of the curve, much like our Singaporean economy, we must continue to assess how we manage our IT investments that give our operations a competitive edge. While we reflect on the exceptional growth and development in the last 47 years, it’s now important to start thinking of what can take us to the next level of growth.
In order to keep moving forward, Network Hardware Resale urges businesses to think differently when it comes to investing in networking infrastructure. Here are five useful tips:
- Networking equipment is built to last 15-25 years
Solid state networking hardware is designed to last 15-25 years (depending on the equipment type). Yet many companies are forced into unnecessary upgrades often 2-3 years after they’ve purchased it and without any benefit to the business. It is clearly in the best interest of the OEMs to advise customers to upgrade everything or risk being left with unsupported equipment. So while you may be told to upgrade, this doesn’t mean your equipment will no longer function well or that you can’t find other consultants to provide support for legacy and current generation networking equipment.
- Vendor agnostic consultants are best
Not all parts of the network are created equal. Every company is unique and every business has different requirements. Before making an upgrade, work with a vendor agnostic consultant who can provide hybrid solutions that leverage the right combination of new and pre-owned equipment to optimize network performance and ROI. A vendor agnostic consultant can assess your operational needs and identify the most appropriate hardware solutions rather than pushing the latest premium priced equipment.
- The 25/75 rule
Research studies show that 75 percent of a company’s IT spend goes towards ongoing maintenance and support and 25 percent is reinvested into upgrades, new resources and staying competitive. When faced with a competitive economy and tight budgets, businesses tend to focus on cutting spends for the future, cancelling projects and reducing resources. It may therefore be advisable to re-think reducing resources and instead consider alternative network maintenance and support options that reduce the 75 percent, so more can be reinvested to stay competitive. Network Hardware Resale offers its NetSure™ Maintenance Program – a complete and customizable network coverage solution, including global four-hour hardware replacement services, that enables businesses and organizations to effectively protect against network downtime for a significant cost-savings compared to traditional OEM maintenance and support solutions.
- New does not always mean highest reliability
While everyone wants to have the latest and greatest, it’s important to consider the fact that independent providers like Network Hardware Resale offer pre-owned hardware with a verified failure rate of 0.5%, which is far lower than the industry failure rate for new equipment from traditional OEMs. Leveraging the refurbished equipment market enables businesses and organizations to effectively protect against network downtime.
- Going green is eco and budget friendly
Is it possible to do more with less? Yes, it just requires the expertise of knowing when to upgrade and when to deploy new equipment to supplement your existing infrastructure. Apart from the obvious savings in capital investment, this helps improve your company’s carbon footprint by reducing e-waste. Every year Network Hardware Resale sells an average of 230,000 individual items, keeping viable equipment out of landfills.
Companies embracing the reuse of IT equipment are saving money and extending networking equipment lifecycles. While leading manufacturers often release product upgrades every three years, switches and routers have a much longer useful life. Re-use is a powerful component for environmental sustainability as it reduces waste materials and lowers consumption of fossil fuels used in the continual manufacturing of new equipment.
By Jason Ogden, Regional Director, Asia-Pacific, Network Hardware Resale
