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Home Services Source And Deploy Smart Supply Capacity on Demand & Utility Computing

Capacity on Demand & Utility Computing

Computacenter makes it easier for organisations to purchase their required IT infrastructure solutions through a range of flexible pricing options tailored to meet specific requirements.

A service component of our Smart Supply solution.

What we do

Having determined the right long-term infrastructure solution, organisations are often faced with the challenge of investing in the solution when not all of the capacity is required upfront. Computacenter offers several pricing models that enable customers to pay for IT solutions according to their activation or usage.

Capacity on Demand
Any mix of IT equipment, software and services can be implemented and subsequently purchased on a "per activation" basis. Activation charges can be Per CPU, Per TB, Per Virtual Machine, Per Licence, or any other relevant measurable metric. Following full activation, title in the infrastructure is passed to the customer.

Utility Charging
Infrastructure solutions can be implemented and billed on an allocation or usage basis, for example Per CPU-month or Per TB-quarter. Customers are required to commit to a minimum average level of usage over the contract duration and have the option to take title to the equipment at the end of the contract.

How it helps

Improved business agility
These commercial models support rapid and flexible deployment of new applications and services. Capacity is pre-provisioned and can be activated in minutes or hours, in contrast with traditional procurement and deployment cycles that can take weeks.

Deferred capital expenditure
Subject to the customer's accounting treatment, Capacity On Demand may enable capital expenditure to be deferred in line with activation, as opposed to being wholly recognised upfront. Alternatively, models can potentially be structured to enable off balance sheet accounting treatment, with costs being viewed as operating costs.

Improved cash flow
Spreading costs in line with activation or usage of capacity helps organisations preserve cash to support their operational needs or strategic investments.

Internal charging
The consolidation of all infrastructure costs into a single activation or usage based pricing structure enables IT departments to pass through costs on an equitable basis to internal users, removing the burden on the first user.

Why we are different

Complete commercial solution
Computacenter is able to incorporate the costs of all infrastructure elements into a single pricing model, combining components from a variety of manufacturers and different areas of technology.

Common approach
Many manufacturers have their own flexible commercial models, each operating under different principles. Adopting a Computacenter model enables common pricing principles across different technology platforms, simplifying overall financial administration of the contracts.

Zero start up costs
Flexible pricing solutions provided by others will typically require a relatively high level of activation at the start of the contract. In contrast, whilst the Computacenter models include minimum commitments over the contract duration, there is no mandatory requirement for activations or payments on day one.

Flexibility
Whilst similar principles are applied across our commercial models, each solution is designed and priced to meet the specific projected capacity requirements of each customer. This ensures each customer receives the benefits of a proven model and a tailored solution

Where we have done it

Computacenter has delivered Capacity on Demand solutions to many major financial services and other organisations across many technology platforms. Most of our contracts are repeat business and parallel-running solutions, demonstrating the popularity of our commercial models once initially adopted.

Carphone Warehouse
A specific example is Carphone Warehouse, which gained significant financial benefits by engaging Computacenter's Utility Pricing models. Steven Gall, Enterprise Architect at Carphone Warehouse, states "We have demonstrated a 50 per cent reduction in storage total cost of ownership, while significantly increasing overall service levels"