Is your phone system archaic?

The most common reason companies change phone systems these days is that their existing system has just gotten too old, and is outdated. When that happens, repairs and maintenance become expensive. Many of the systems that are in use today have reached “End of Life” which means the manufacturer is no longer supporting the system nor making new parts. The last time many business installed a new system was in preparation for Y2K … that was 14 years ago.  Phone system life spans range from 5 to 15 years after that they tend to be technically obsolete by either industry standards or by the manufacturer itself.  We recently serviced a system that was installed in 1986 … it is still working but finding parts was difficult and we had to find & study manuals … which take time.  Many of these business phone systems are working, which is a testament to the quality and durability of phone systems, however even if they still function these old systems are costing more and more to repair and service with every year that goes by. Worse yet, the replacement parts are all “refurbished” aka used and online marketers are usually the source.  When something breaks or the whole system fails, repair may not be possible. Today our technologists are installing a new system into a business that had their system fail last weekend.  They have gone the week with a patchwork single line phone.  The cost of the new system is small in comparison to the lost or missed calls during this work week. Missed calls means lost business which means lost revenue.  The new phone system we installed today is inexpensive when looking at this week of sales and service for them.

Additionally, the older systems are much more difficult to manage than modern ones, requiring more expertise by service professionals with ancient training, many of which have left the work force. It can be very expensive to repair that old system and will only get more expensive as those “experienced” technicians and replacement parts disappear.

Our advice, be proactive before your old dinosaur breaks with no options for repair. In most cases, the system has already “paid” for itself. And in general, it’s best to invest money when you have time to research. That way you won’t be caught without phones for days if the old system fails and has to be replaced.

Note: We thought about titling this "Is your phone system Obsolete" but after a series of service calls to systems that had been installed in the 80's "Archaic" seemed more appropriate.