Time to unload old gear?
“Out with the old, in with the new” is never an easy decision in the IT world, particularly if companies hope to get some residual value from obsolete PCs, laptops, PDAs, and other kinds of hardware. Environmental regulations and concerns about data security can make it costly to simply dump old machines, with some observers predicting a growing crisis regarding such “E-waste.” With IT asset management now receiving more attention (see story above), a company called PlanlTROI is encouraging its corporate clients to manage the back end of the procurement process and part with that gear while it still has some value.
There is no shortage of vendors in that space. IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and others now often address that final phase of the equipment life cycle when they strike deals, but PlanlTROI brings an E-business model to the task. Its Valuator is a Web-based calculator and asset manager that allows companies to enter details pertaining to the gear they want to get rid of and find out with a mouse click what it’s worth. The Valuator will also walk companies through the process of deciding when to get rid of old equipment for maximum gain. Whether a company uses this service or not, keeping a detailed record of all hardware–from manufacturer, model, and serial number to add-ons, options, and current condition–is key to any effort to salvage some value from aging equipment.
COPYRIGHT 2004 CFO Publishing Corp.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group
