Total Cost of Ownership: the Device-as-a-Service model for reducing TCO

For many companies, particularly small and medium-sized companies, as well as start-ups, the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) , i.e., the overall cost of owning an asset, greatly influences purchasing decisions. One of the main advantages of the Device-as-a-Service model proposed by Acer DaaS is precisely to reduce the cost of ownership, which can weigh on a company’s budget. Let’s find out what TCO means and how to lower these costs.

TCO: what is it?

TCO stands for Total Cost of Ownership, which indicates the overall expenses that a company will endure over the course of a product’s life cycle. In more detail, TCO is a financial estimate procedure that analyses and takes into account all fixed and variable costs incurred by a company for the asset in question: purchase, installation, deployment, maintenance, if any, and disposal.

While this evaluation tool is applied to the purchase of a variety of equipment and assets, it is particularly useful for companies that need to purchase larger quantities of IT devices and accessories. By performing a TCO analysis, it is possible to identify the known and hidden cost factors (maintenance, administration, user training, and technical support) before making an investment, in order to understand and reproduce the real costs of acquiring an asset.

TCO analysis: how does it work?

TCO considers not only the cost of purchasing equipment, but also all the costs that arise over the equipment’s entire life cycle. In the case of IT devices, they must be installed, connected, managed, maintained, and updated. Therefore, the TCO analysis must also consider other factors, such as:

• Costs related to project installation, configuration, training, testing, and startup
• Costs for the customisation of employee devices
• Operational costs, which include IT staff training, end-user supports, security management, server usage, power consumption, internet connection, and costs arising from any malfunctions
• Costs associated with the decommissioning of obsolete computer equipment

How does DaaS help you reduce TCO?

Before purchasing IT devices, companies can conduct a TCO analysis to understand and balance productivity needs and budget constraints. However, in an increasingly technological world where constant updates are necessary to remain competitive, compromising on ambitious and mission critical projects is not an option. That’s why the Acer DaaS Device-as-a-Service model aims to help organisations, both large and small, reduce their total cost ownership.

Indeed, as we have seen, the purchase and management of a company’s IT equipment includes numerous expenses, including a large initial capital investment. By working with Acer DaaS, companies can optimise these costs into a single operating expense that is, most importantly, predictable. It also allows IT investments to be managed with increased agility in order to meet changing needs, while also lightening the load on the IT department, which can finally focus on other more strategic activities within the company.