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What happens in this segment?

As the Business Technology Life Cycle moves into the Maintain segment, most businesses re-enter familiar territory.  The tasks associated with this segment are, after all, the primary function of the corporate IT department:  system maintenance and administration, asset tracking, etc.  Many companies assume that the familiarity of these tasks means that they need not seek assistance; this assumption can prove problematic.

With the adoption of new technology come new challenges to the IT support team.  Often, new systems require new maintenance and administrative skills.  Similarly, the powerful new administrative tools that accompany many new technologies can uncover hidden performance issues in older elements of the network.  Familiar upgrade paths must be set aside to accommodate new equipment and applications.  New tools and metrics must be adopted to verify that the organization is seeing the promised benefit from its investment in new systems.  Together, these seemingly small adjustments can become a significant barrier to the return to business-as-usual following implementation.

Perhaps most problematic of all is the increasingly thorny issue of disposal.  IT equipment contains many exotic elements now classified as toxic waste; the days of throwing broken monitors and PCs into the trash are gone forever.  Often even outdated equipment has value to someone, but considerable expertise is required to identify the best buyer and realize the highest value.  Most companies simply do not have the time or resources to get more than token value from the equipment they have replaced.

What specifically is involved?

The Maintain segment of the Business Technology Life Cycle involves largely familiar tasks:

• Maintain systems
• Measure and track results
• Upgrade or replace as needed
• Dispose of old equipment

How can Solarcom Capital help?

Despite the familiarity of the Maintain segment tasks, Solarcom Capital and our partners provide a variety of products and services which can make those tasks easier, more convenient, and more cost-effective.  These include:

• Asset Tracking
  Asset tracking is one of the most important jobs in corporate IT.  It is also one of the most painstaking, and among the most undervalued.  The level of bookkeeping required for effective asset tracking is simply too much for typical IT department resources to keep up, and little-known requirements from individual vendors can lead to costly oversights.  Solarcom Capital helps our customers with our user-friendly asset and lease management tool, built into our Customer Information System. This online toolset allows clients to keep abreast of asset inventory, upgrades, and even maintenance contracts effortlessly, and provides instant access to lease and other key documents.
   
• Maintenance Agreements
  Solarcom Capital provides innovative financing plans which combine the substantial cost savings of multi-year agreements with the convenience of periodic payments.  And our sister company, Atlantix Global Systems, is the industry leader in spares, replacement parts, and guaranteed reliable unused and refurbished midrange and network systems.
   
• Technology Updates and Upgrades
  Updates and upgrades can be a real headache for companies that lease their IT equipment.  Most leases simply do not accommodate these standard-practice changes.  Solarcom Capital TechFlex and Quarterly Takedown leases are flexible, specifically designed to recognize the need for upgrades and even fold the associated costs into the existing lease.  Replacement PCs and additional hardware can be accommodated easily, and Solarcom Capital’s innovative residual terms allow like-for-like equipment credits for PCs.  Rather than charge penalties for a lost or damaged PC at lease-end, we can accept a different machine with the same specs for full credit.
   
• End-of-life Valuation
  Most businesses overpay for leased equipment, and the reason is simple:  the lease undervalues the equipment at the end of the term.  Solarcom Capital is affiliated with the industry leader in used equipment, Atlantix Global Systems, allowing us to set end-of-life valuation with unparalleled accuracy.  This means Solarcom Capital leases are written without the “fudge factors” commonly used by others, and our customers enjoy lower lease payments.  We are also one of the few technology lessors who actually expect to get leased equipment back at the end of the lease, so we don’t artificially deflate the value to make an end-of-lease purchase more attractive.  Again, our customers can enjoy lower payments, and avoid the hassle and expense of disposing of old equipment.
   
• Equipment Trade-ins
  Because our sister company Atlantix Global Systems is a used-equipment giant, Solarcom Capital is able to obtain real value from aging systems.  For many customers, we recognize this value in the form of trade-in allowances; others prefer to place replaced equipment on consignment, which can yield a slightly better return in exchange for postponing payment until the equipment is sold.

 
The Business Technology Life Cycle
Introduction - Discover - Acquire - Implement - Maintain