CSI_Leasing

I'd echo this. For any leases we are involved with, we do not get involved with the maintenance or support of the equipment, as it is generally the responsibility of the supplier. However, I can't say for certain that this is how Compulease operate.

With these machines being on a leasing agreement, I'd suggest any alterations being made to prevent this don't devalue the machines. Most leasing companies should accept fair wear and tear over the life of the equipment, but beware of charges for solutions that could affect the potential sell-on price for the lessor. However, kit being returned with RAM missing is likely to be more costly in terms of charges I'd have thought - either that or the cost of you replacing it before returning the equipment. Maybe you can use the threat of penalty charges to persuade some pro-active handling of this situation from the powers-that-be?

Our subsidiary CSI Lifecycle Services collect old equipment, and providing it is a reasonable amount of equipment, it's usually free of charge.

This is staggering! What's the maintenance like on these? And how long does it take for a class to log-on / log-off - would that not almost take up the entire lesson?!

Hi all, I'm Chris, an Account Manager at CSI Leasing UK. We work with a number of schools and colleges across the UK to provide flexible leasing services for IT purchases. If anyone would like any information about leasing, or for a lease quote, just let me know.

I've sent you a PM.

The above post brings up a lot of good points. This is really important, it's always best to speak to the LEA before going any further. I'd possibly dispute this. Four year refresh programmes are common, but five years for desktops seems long, and when leasing probably isn't all that cost-effective. Gartner's TCO research suggests three or four years is ideal for desktops. Three years is where you'll get the best lease rates. This is a great point. Leasing does help you adopt a disciplined approach to managing your IT, although sometimes the leasing company may help you get started more quickly with either a sale & leaseback of newly-acquired equipment, or buy your old equipment off you to bring down the costs of your initial lease. This is the ideal scenario when leasing really. You can tie up all of your warranties and refresh cycles with the lease term and at the same time not worry about disposal as the leasing company should handle it.

Hi, This is my first post here having stumbled across this topic when one of my Google Alerts flagged up "computer leasing". I won't go into a sales pitch (I believe that's frowned upon!) but would just like to put across a few general points about the advantages AND disadvantages of schools leasing their equipment - hopefully I won't come across as too biased! Leasing certainly can be cost effective, but it depends on your circumstances. If you have a rolling replacement scheme of 3 years, and don't want to own the kit at the end of that timeframe, there's a good chance leasing is worth taking a look at. Leasing can help a school get more out of their budget and it offers predictable cash flow for the duration of the lease. Leases will usually include the cost of any disposal too, so it's worth considering that cost in a lease v. purchase decision, as it can be overlooked. By leasing kit over 3 years it often ties in with manufacturer's warranties too, and if you do adhere to a rolling refresh then you should find maintenance costs come down because kit always stays in warranty. However, leasing isn't the be-all and end-all (unfortunately for us!). If you like to own the equipment, then you should never really lease. If you like your equipment to have lifecycle of over 4 years, then again, leasing is probably best avoided (with the exception of leasing servers, perhaps). One important thing I should mention is that LEA-backed schools do have some strict rules to follow when leasing. LEAs will insist that the leases are Residual Value Leases. This means that the leasing company must take an equity stake (residual value) in the equipment so that the school does not lease against the full cost of the equipment - rather the cost minus the leasing company's equity stake. The leasing company then aims to recoup this stake at the end of the lease, usually by selling the equipment to the second-user market. The specific rules on this subject are interpreted differently from LEA to LEA however, so it's always best to consult with them first. I've probably missed out something, but if you have any questions please feel free to ask and I'll do my best to give you some honest answers.