As a data center operator, you’re used to working as smartly as you can with the data center hardware you have. While new tools and technologies come onstream every day, the priority remains meeting immediate needs and ensuring uptime. Then a pandemic arrives and turns everything in the workplace on its head.
Here are some essential resources to help you strike the balance between managing data center hardware cost effectively while planning for upgrades and replacements in a sustainable way.
1. Review
It’s important to approach hardware asset management strategically. While that doesn’t mean revisiting your plans every day, it does mean finding time on a regular basis to review your data center hardware. What’s working and what isn’t? What changes need to be made?
- Are you maintaining a comprehensive inventory of your data center assets?
- Do you have a clear protocol in place for updating inventory?
- Are you identifying opportunities to recover value from your retiring assets?
Resources
Whether you’re preparing for the decommissioning of equipment, considering a partial or full cloud migration, or organizing a refresh cycle, here are some resources to guide your planning:
- Data Center Decommissioning Checklist
- Data Security Tips for Cloud Migration
- Five Obstacles To Data Center Hardware Reuse And Remarketing
- Review Overview
2. Refresh
Determining exactly when and how to run a hardware refresh is not simple. There are competing factors to consider, from cost and licensing to configuration and need.
The truth is the economics of a technology refresh are complex, and refresh cycles are getting longer. With COVID-19 hitting the economy hard, survey after survey of IT departments indicate an across-the-board tightening of belts.
At the same time, research suggests companies that refresh their hardware every three years enjoy operating costs almost 60% lower than companies that run refresh cycles every six years.
With cash tight and CIOs cautious, data center operators will be looking at increasingly creative ways to structure their hardware refreshes and the financing that supports them.
Resources
- Understanding Hardware Refresh Cycles 2020
- Recovering Value From Enterprise Hard Drives
- The Advantages of Factory Recertified
- Refresh Overview
Get more out of your existing hardware while making space for the latest and great technology.
3. Reuse
Hardware refreshes are great, but what about the equipment you’re replacing? Even in these times of ultra efficiency, it’s easy to overlook the opportunity for repurposing retiring hardware elsewhere in your organization. Reusing is not only good for your IT budget but good for the environment.
There are two types of reuse—internal and external:
1 – Internal — Having an internal redeployment strategy in place supports your company’s equipment planning and avoids unnecessary purchasing.
2 – External — As IT assets become more sophisticated and expensive, shipping this hardware straight to the recycler doesn’t make sense. Reselling your rigorously sanitized hardware on the secondary market can produce a meaningful and reliable revenue stream for your company.
# Pro tip – Start planning for reuse at the point that new hardware is deployed. Deciding on a reuse or remarketing plan when the hardware is earmarked for retirement leads to weaker decision making and lower returns.
Resources
- How To Maximize Your IT Asset Recovery
- The Case For Reusing Hard Drives
- 5 Reasons Why Coronavirus Will Drive The Green Data Center
- Reuse Overview
Get more out of your retiring data center hardware through remarketing and reuse.
4. Return
Sometimes you end up with hardware that doesn’t work or that you don’t need. Cast an eye around your warehouse shelves and loading bay for evidence of this. Are you on top of your return parts management? Are you managing your excess inventory effectively?
An experienced IT asset disposition firm will help secure the best prices for your equipment. You’ll be surprised at the value you have sitting on your shelves and in your repair pile.
# Pro tip – Devise robust workflows to process this hardware. A top ITAD company will help design a solution to meet your needs. For optimal success, these workflows must be comprehensively adopted across the organization. Ask for your CIO’s input and sign-off.
Resources
- Managing Excess Inventory In The Enterprise Data Center
- Five Things To Look For In An ITAD Company
- Data Security And Why Humans Remain The Weakest Link
- Return Overview
Make sure what goes around comes around when it comes to your hardware asset management.
5. Recycle
When it’s no longer possible to reuse or remarket a piece of equipment, responsible recycling is the right course of action. But not all recyclers are the same.
Consult with your ITAD firm for support with the best recycling plan for your equipment, ensuring clear chain of custody and regulatory compliance throughout.
Resources
- A Guide To Secure Data Sanitization In The Data Center
- Tips For Greening Data Center Hardware
- Data Center Management And The Circular Economy: Key Initiatives To Watch
- Recycle Overview
Put the green into data center recycling while ensuring security and compliance.
Managing Data Center Hardware
The job of a data center operator involves more balancing acts than a modern-day circus. Here are some final resources to help you walk the high-wire act of hardware asset management with confidence and ease:
- Are You Storing Too Much Information?
- A Guide to IT Asset Disposition
- The Future Of Data Center Storage
The team at Horizon Technology will help you construct a secure and responsible IT asset disposition (ITAD) plan with comprehensive asset reporting that meets local, state, and federal regulatory requirements. Get in touch to schedule a consultation.
Get more out of your data center hardware.
