The National Audit Office (NAO) delivered a channel bonanza last week after publishing a report that revealed gaping holes in the government’s IT disposal strategy, leaving the path open for shrewd VARs to cash in.
According to the NAO report, the government has limited plans in place for the disposal of its own IT hardware, despite last month forcing the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive, which insists on the safe disposal of old IT kit, onto UK businesses.
Sir John Bourn, head of the NAO, said: “The government has so far not given enough thought to how it disposes of its computers and related equipment. It needs to understand better the trade-offs between securing immediate financial value and the wider environmental costs and benefits associated with the disposal of IT equipment.
“The government should then use this knowledge to develop appropriate procurement and disposal strategies.”
Savvy resellers that offer WEEE-related services will be well placed to advise and assist government departments on this, Bourn hinted.
The report said the procurement value of public sector IT will shoot up from £2.7bn in 2005-2006 to £4.1bn by 2010-2011. It also suggested the government should refresh every three years, instead of every five to get a better return on old kit.
Lee Bevan, managing director of VAR Leapfrog services, said: “Every single school we have sold to has had a heap of old IT kit just sitting there doing nothing. They don’t realise that there is value in that old kit.”
Mike Lawrence, managing director of VAR Bentpenny, said: “I would love to offer WEEE-related services to customers, but there is no way I would risk it because the regulations are still too unclear.”
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