AV equipment complexity is driving up the cost of meeting room maintenance

Another major issue for businesses is the complexity of the AV equipment, with more than half of presenters trying to fix problems themselves before they call IT, and 93 per cent of IT managers say that by doing so, it either make the problem worse or cause totally new ones.

Another hidden cost found by the research was that the average attendee’s time wasted in dealing with equipment problems amounted to nearly three days which is costing British businesses up to £25 million per year.
 
The research, carried out by independent UK research company, Dynamic Markets, surveyed 200 business execs and 100 IT managers in large UK companies.

The study finds, however, that this is just the tip of the iceberg — with AV equipment such as projectors, laptops and monitors having a significant impact on the business balance sheet. Companies were asked to estimate the average annual cost of maintaining meeting room technologies. Over half (57 per cent) ignored these figures, reporting that they didn’t keep track of them. The average estimate was over £8,000 per year, rising to nearly £12,500 once IT staff costs were included Source: IT staff costs based on Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE); Analysis by Occupation (4 digit SOC), Table 14.7.

With a total of 8,265 Source: The UK Office of National Statistics, BIS (Department for Business Innovation and Skills) Small and Medium Enterprise Statistics 2008; BIS Enterprise Directorate Analytical Unit. large companies in the UK, the cost to large British business is over £103 million a year.
 
The study also reveals the gruelling strain this maintenance places on IT departments. As well as the impact to businesses bottom lines, there is a significant impact to IT managers themselves. The average round trip between an IT support desk and meeting rooms is 92 metres. In a year this sees IT Managers covering a lot of ground — nearly equivalent to the London marathon, or from Tower Bridge to Gatwick Airport.
 
On average, 34 presentation equipment incidents are dealt with every month, with each taking over 23 minutes. Across a year, this eats up nearly 23 days of an IT manager’s time — well over a working month and around 10 per cent of their annual capacity.

In response to the findings, Casio has launched a set of guidelines for businesses feeling the pain of maintaining meeting room technology. For many companies, IT refresh is now a priority in the next 12 months, as many meeting room technologies have had their lifecycles extended as a result of the recession. Casio’s guidelines, available here are designed to help companies buy smarter when it comes to office technology and select products that offer reduced maintenance, ease-of-use, low procurement costs and high performance.