The Hidden Costs of Skipping Computer Upgrades

The typical recommendation for businesses is to upgrade their computers on a 3-4 year cycle and while no company likes to spend money, particularly when they don’t see an immediate return on investment. The cost of a slowing system over time can outstrip the price of a replacement — That’s before we include some of the benefits from a new computer.

Employee costing the business £30 per hour and working 220 days a year

So let’s imagine a basic “business” grade computer that is now entering year four of its life. It now consumes 5 minutes of delays throughout the day compared to when it was new. That could be starting up in the morning, searching for emails, opening applications and security updates/scans. In year five, the delays have increased and now means the company is wasting employees time to the tune of £1,650. An average PC for a business with installation is easily around half of that.

The calculations get worst if…

• The original computer was cheap
• Laptops tend to age quicker
• Your business needs high-powered machines for 3D and Graphical work
• You operate with Realtime Systems (Customer facing)
• Your cost per head is more than £30 per hour
• We’ve downgraded the industry reported slow down from thirteen minutes to five minutes
• You add in potential profit loss

Reasons to upgrade

So aside from the indirect costs to the business, here another couple of more reasons to upgrade:-

Increased Productivity

Goes without saying, your latest computer will have faster processors and more memory to handle the newest version of Windows and Microsoft Office.

Business Growth & Competitive

Bringing in new systems can often introduce new features that benefit the business, help to move the organisation forward.

Security & Compliance

Yes, security products do slow down computers, but with an increased level of compliance coming down from governments, a business can’t afford to do way IT security. What’s more, new computers will often have improved security features.

Happier Staff

Staff hate slow computers; it will compound any negative feelings they have about their job. If you value your employees ensure they have the best tools to succeed.

Manage Support Costs

Eventually, the inefficiency of an ageing computer fleet will not only affect your organisation but that of your IT department or outsourced IT support company. IT people would rather your day-to-day IT operations run smoothly, and that same time and energy can be focused on value-added solutions for the company.

6 Top Tips for upgrading your companies computers

1. Budget around 20% of your computers to be replaced every year
2. Ensure you’ve exhausted all possible PC upgrades (Memory & Hard Drives)
3. Spend a bit more when purchasing can extend the life of the PC beyond 3-4 years
4. Buy cheap and that computer needs replacing in year two! We see it all the time.
5. Do staff having different computing needs, be clever how you upgrade the PC fleet
6. Refurbished computers can help with tight budgets better value