4 Signs It’s Time to Switch from OEM Support to Third-Party Maintenance

Businesses of all sizes depend on data centers and IT infrastructures for their operations, from daily communications to large-scale data processing and storage. For any enterprise, maintaining these IT systems in good condition is crucial: a high-performing data center optimizes business operations, while downtime and failures can bring businesses to a halt.

This is why a robust IT support strategy is critical for businesses of all sizes and industries. In this article, we help you decide if whether your current strategy is meeting your needs, and how to move forward if not.

From OEM to TPM support: Breaking down the signs it’s time to reconsider your IT support strategy

Data center maintenance and support incorporates a range of services to keep IT infrastructures available, secure and performing efficiently. These include hardware inspections, diagnostics, repairs and replacements of faulty parts.

Often, companies rely on the device’s Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for their IT maintenance. This is especially true while the hardware is under the OEM’s warranty. However, it isn’t necessarily the most cost-effective or flexible option for businesses once that warranty runs out.

Luckily, companies do have other options to keep their IT infrastructures in top condition well after a product’s warranty expiration, End-of-Life or End-of-Support date. Third-Party Maintenance (TPM) is one such alternative. TPM offers a range of benefits, including:

• saving your enterprise money
• offering services tailored to your business needs through customizable SLAs
• consolidating multiple support contracts into one comprehensive agreement
• helping businesses reach their sustainability goals

If you’re dependent on OEM support and facing these four challenges, it may be time to reconsider your IT maintenance strategy:

Sign #1: Your IT Maintenance Costs Keep Rising

Problem

Although many hardware items come with a warranty which includes support and updates, this agreement is temporary. Once the warranty runs out, renewals of OEM support contracts are notoriously expensive , with costs only increasing as hardware ages.

Why It Matters

Businesses often overpay for coverage they don’t fully use. This has a significant impact on their IT budgets, wasting capital which could have been allocated to other projects or saved in case of a disaster.

Solution

Third-Party Maintenance offers flexible service-level agreements (SLAs) at 30-70% lower costs than OEM support renewal contracts. This way, your business saves money and benefits from the services they need, without spending on those they don’t.

In a data center environment with various hardware models and brands, consolidating support from multiple contacts into a single point of contact also represents a saving. Evernex’s multi-brand expertise and skilled engineers ensure you receive top-quality maintenance services, covering top brands such as DELL EMC and Cisco, but at a fraction of the cost of OEM coverage.

Sign #2: Your Hardware Is Labeled “End-of-Life” (EOL) or “End-of-Support” (EOS)

Problem

To encourage new hardware purchases, OEMs declare product milestones such as EOL or EOS, even when said assets are still fully functional. EOL and EOS refer to the stages of the IT hardware lifecycle in which the manufacturer no longer produces the product or provides support or updates. OEMs cease to manufacture or support older hardware models to push consumers into buying newer models. While the OEM may gain economically, driving unnecessary hardware refreshes has considerable financial and operational consequences for businesses, as well as damaging the environment through the generation of e-waste and carbon emissions.

Why It Matters

E-waste generation is rising by 2.6 million tons per year, ending up in landfills where it pollutes the surrounding environment. Meanwhile, purchasing new hardware contributes to the scope 3 carbon emissions caused by manufacturing.

Many businesses replace their date center infrastructure every 3-5 years, in line with established EOL and EOS dates. However, these devices could continue to function properly for several years after this date. Upgrading your hardware prematurely both strains IT budgets unnecessarily and increases electronic waste.

Solution

TPM providers continue to support EOL and EOS hardware with spare part replacements, repairs and expert maintenance. This way, we help to extend your devices’ lifecycles, saving your business the costs of unnecessary upgrades.

Hardware lifecycle extension also reduces e-waste generation and the demand for new hardware. This offers the key environmental benefits of decreasing the Scope 3 carbon emissions and resource extraction caused by hardware manufacture.

EOSL database

Sign #3: You Need More Flexible SLAs & Faster Support

Problem

OEM contracts often come with one-size-fits-all SLAs. These contracts may not align with your operational needs and can imply unnecessary costs.

Why It Matters

You might be paying for a service level you don’t need or struggling with slow response times. Slow support when your IT hardware experiences a crisis can lead to extended downtime, reduced productivity and loss of revenue.

Solution

Third-Party Maintenance providers offer customized SLAs to suit your business’s specific requirements. Options can include 24/7 support, on-site repairs, and spare part availability. Tailored SLAs ensure your company’s IT systems receive the exact support they need, faster. These flexible contracts also mean you only pay for the services you will use, helping your company to enjoy lower maintenance costs.

Sign #4: Your IT Team Wants More Control Over Hardware Lifecycle Decisions

Problem

OEMs dictate the upgrade cycles of their hardware, pushing businesses to replace their systems in line with their sales-driven timelines.

Why It Matters

IT teams should have the freedom to decide when and how to upgrade their data center infrastructures based on their business needs, not OEM marketing strategies.

Solution

TPM empowers IT leaders to optimize their hardware investments. This includes deferring unnecessary replacements while ensuring full maintenance coverage. We maximize businesses’ ROI on their data center hardware through lifecycle extension, part replacements and updates – in short, helping your devices work better for longer. This way, we help your money go further while placing the decisions about hardware lifecycle management firmly in your hands.

Is It Time to Make the Switch?

Especially as business IT infrastructures age, OEM maintenance can become costly, rigid and complex. Above all, upgrade and refreshment timelines are designed to profit the manufacturer, not businesses.

Third-Party Maintenance is a smart alternative to traditional OEM data center support.

By switching to TPM, businesses could enjoy cost savings, extended hardware lifespan, flexible and customized support contracts, and better IT control.

Take a look at your business’s current OEM contract and evaluate whether it best serves your IT needs. If not, consider TPM to get the most out of your enterprise data center, reduce your operational costs and minimize your carbon footprint.

How does Evernex help businesses improve their IT strategy?

Switching from OEM to third-party maintenance is an opportunity to reconsider how you manage and support your IT infrastructure. From assessing your existing assets to tailoring support contracts and ensuring access to spare parts, Evernex helps you build a flexible, cost-effective IT support strategy that aligns with your business needs. Here’s how we can help:

Audit your existing infrastructure

At Evernex, we conduct personalized consultations to assess your data center infrastructure and identify opportunities to optimize your IT support strategy. This includes creating an up-to-date inventory of your IT assets, including their locations, end-of-life (EOL) and end-of-service (EOS) dates, and support status.

Our experts then provide tailored recommendations and pathways to help you extend hardware lifecycles, optimize maintenance, and manage multi-vendor environments more effectively.

Customize your contract

At Evernex, we adapt our SLAs to your infrastructure, business requirements, and budget, offering flexible support options based on the criticality of your IT systems. This ensures you get the right level of support for your needs, without paying for a one-size-fits-all solution

Benefit from local spare parts availability

With over 330 forward stocking locations worldwide, Evernex helps ensure fast, reliable access to the hardware spare parts you need. Our extensive inventory includes legacy components, helping you extend the life of your existing infrastructure.

For mission-critical systems, we can also provide on-site spare part replacement services to help minimize downtime.

Submit and track support tickets easily

Evernex makes managing support requests straightforward, with an efficient process that takes you from ticket submission to resolution. Through our user-friendly online platform, you can track your IT assets, submit support tickets, and upload error logs to help our teams quickly and accurately diagnose and resolve issues.

Access support without the runaround

Evernex provides a streamlined, consolidated support process backed by SLAs tailored to your needs, helping ensure clear accountability, faster resolutions, and minimal disruption to your business.