When IT hardware is new it can make sense to stay with an OEM maintenance contract to meet warranty requirements. However, once the warranty period expires it is usually beneficial to switch to a Third Party Maintenance contract (TPM). It is well known that Third Party Maintenance provides a significant cost savings, but there are other advantages to TPM for out of warranty hardware.
The TPM Price Advantage
Manufacturers’ service contracts take a sharp price increase when equipment goes out of warranty. An IT manufacturer’s business model is not providing service, but selling new hardware. Third party maintainers are only in the business of service. At FrontierUS, we have found that most of our Third Party Maintenance clients save at least 40% over what they paid for OEM service. Beyond the contract price, OEM services require manufacturer parts. Sometimes, only an OEM part will do, but often the OEM spec requirement creates an unnecessary expense. For example, a standard NEMA 5-15P to IEC 320 C13 Power Cable can be as much as $50 as an OEM part, even though the $10 unbranded power cord is identical to the OEM product. OEM service providers use only new parts from their inventory. TPM providers don’t have the same restrictions.
The Responsible Maintainer
If your installation includes multiple manufacturers, an OEM service provider will only be responsible for a portion of the equipment. It’s possible to have two or more OEM service providers looking at the same issue. While we expect the best from all maintenance representatives, it is just human nature that an OEM service technician will look at the unfamiliar equipment as the source of a problem. With a TPM contract all equipment from multiple manufacturers can be included in one agreement. Every TPM technician is responsible for the entire system, not just one segment. Third party service technicians are expert diagnosticians, and can identify and resolve issues between systems where OEM providers cannot. In any multi-vendor installation TPM is the best solution.
Maximize IT Investment
OEM service ends when a manufacturer designates a product End-of-Life. The EOL designation has more to do with new products in the manufacturer’s pipeline than it does with the actual usefulness of the equipment. TPM providers often have access to parts for EOL hardware that OEM providers will not use. Many parts and spares for EOL hardware are only available on the secondary market. While an OEM provider may declare a piece of equipment unserviceable because their OEM parts are no longer in their stock, a third party maintainer will access parts from several sources, new, new-old-stock, or tested refurbished. A TPM provider will continue to offer many more years of reliable parts and service.
TPM agreements will save money and extend the life of your IT investment. A third party maintainer will offer service for all you equipment, and can customize plans to your exact needs. While OEM service has a fixed menu of service choices, TPM can tailor any maintenance contract to your business requirements and your exact hardware installation.
FrontierUS can customize a long-term TPM contract to keep your IT systems up and running
