These days, if you want a package deal for your mobile solution, a value-added reseller could be the best-placed organisation to supply it. Sharon Clancy explains the resellers' changing role

Rightly or wrongly, in the past many resellers in the data capture world were seen by some as primarily box shifters. They could secure you a good deal on the price of handheld computers, printers and scanners, and could perhaps offer some limited repair service.

Increasingly, however, some of them are offering the types of services more traditionally sourced from integrators and companies specialising in managed services – often referred to as Value Added Resellers (VARS).

A key trend in mobile deployments is towards one-stop shopping. User-companies lack the time and expertise to source all the various elements required for a mobility solution themselves, so they are turning to suppliers to bridge the gap. That in turn has led to partnerships of varying kinds involving hardware and software suppliers, managed services specialists, resellers and distributors.

One-stop shopping

As a result, resellers are having to up their game simply to stay in business. This, at any rate, is the view of Phil Holm of Kestronics. 'Everyone wants a good deal and, thanks to easy Internet access, everyone one knows the going rate for a particular item of hardware.'

Holm says that more customers want a complete package, too. 'Unlike the big distributors, we are dealing with end users. For some of them the actual device is not that important. They're more interested in the business benefits that mobile data capture will bring.'

'Resellers have had to transform themselves from sales companies to service organisations,' says Adrian Lawson, UK managing director of Ryzex. 'Margins have been eroded on sales of new equipment, and we now have to add value through offering more services to the customer. In a mobile deployment, hardware represents only 30 per cent of the cost. The rest is about applications, connections and services.'

Lawson says the focus is on companies still investing in solutions that will help them become more efficient and take cost out of the business.

'Resellers offer best-of-breed multi-vendor capability. Device choice can depend on what devices fit the customer's needs and what he is trying to achieve. User-companies might end up with a mixed estate to get the best solution for all parts of their solution.'

He adds: 'No device manufacturer can offer the best solution in all cases, so resellers need multiple partnerships to bring it all together. Flawless implementation is the key; without it, a deployment can end up being a colossal waste of money.'

Windows CE and Windows Mobile have made it easier for user-companies to become device-agnostic, says Phil Holm. 'It is easier to develop applications in CE and then run them on any suitable device than it was with past operating systems. It's no longer a question of what language is easier to use.'

Spirit Data Capture says its customers are increasingly asking for software as well as hardware solutions. 'Customers now have more experience of mobile technology today and many know what they are looking for,' says director Kevin Thomas. 'If we can provide a software solution as well, that can be a key differentiator when it comes to securing the sale.'

Thomas says the company's role has become more one of trusted advisor. 'That's a much overused phrase, but it is exactly what many of our customers are looking for. Ideally, we like to be involved in the planning stages of a deployment, because we think our expertise can help customers avoid mistakes, or simply take a decision faster on a particular aspect, whether it be hardware or network provider.'

Blackbay says it sees its role as ensuring customers receive the best advice that exactly matches both their current and future requirements. It even offers fully managed enterprise mobility solutions that include 24/7 support and hosting of mission-critical data if required.

Codegate, too, offers multiple levels of service including bespoke software design and production, back-office integration, equipment deployment and configuration, on-site maintenance, packaged solutions, data network efficiency analysis and Web hosting.

The trend to one-stop shopping, whether sourced from a VAR, a systems integrator or some other supplier, is growing – not least because user-companies have learned that sourcing different parts of the mobile solution from various suplliers can result in the each supplier blaming the other for any later fault in the deployment.

'Opting for single-source responsibility for the entire solution avoids the *not our problem' scenario,' points out Codegate's Terran Churcher. 'You should be working with certified resellers and software providers; both have extensive knowledge of the devices, and crucially, understand the complexities of mobility deployments and support.'

'It is important to look for proven suppliers and proven solution offerings,' agrees Blackbay's Larry Klimcyzk. 'Resellers may offer a software solution, but you need to look at their experience in delivering mobility solutions and follow up references. You need to be looking for resellers and software providers who offer a combined mobility solution that delivers expertise in software implementation and hardware support.'

The mobile solution suppliers also agree that you need a supplier who knows about mobile solutions. 'Programming a handheld computer is completely different from programming a PC. This can mean the difference between a solution that actually gets used as intended and one that fails to meet end-user needs,' warns Churcher.

Users are expecting more from software and looking for easy integration into their back-end systems, says Spirit's Kevin Thomas. 'They are looking for rapid application deployment and even to be able to do minor upgrades in house.

'Resellers need to be able to offer the flexibility to develop software initially for a customer and to offer them the choice to upgrade the application later. Companies are no long comfortable at being locked into using a given application developer for future upgrades. They want the choice of being able to do it themselves.'

Ryzex does not write its own software, but it does have software partners, so it can offer complete solutions. 'We have just finished a deployment for KNDL, where service support and the online reporting tools were key requirements.'

Service support

If you have internal IT support, then maybe all that you needs is a reseller offering simply the best deal for the mobile devices that you have determined your business requires.

However, even if you are this type of buyer, you are still likely to need some basic after-sales reports, including warranty and device repair services. The leading ruggedised handheld manufacturers all offer this type of service themselves, but if you are buying a brand that doesn't have a strong presence in the UK, you still need a repair and maintenance service and warranty support. Rugged they may be, but that doesn't mean handheld computers are immune to in-service damage. Resellers have stepped into the breach to offer this kind of service.

Kestronic's Holm reports a trend to all-inclusive maintenance for the three to five years expected for the deployment. 'In these economic times, people don't want nasty surprises in year four.'

Resellers often run multi-user buffer stocks to keep costs down. 'Nine out of ten of our customers are happy for us to manage buffer stocks for them, although we also have customers who want a dedicated stock,' says Thomas. 'Resellers often have the experience to advise whether it is cheaper to upgrade than run legacy equipment and suffer higher repair costs.'

Total cost of ownership

Resellers also have a vast amount of experience when it comes to total cost of ownership of devices. Ryzex was set up in the US as a used equipment brokerage with the philosophy that it was a waste of resources to throw away electrical equipment whose life could be extended. It operates a buy-back programme for legacy equipment and uses the parts to refurbish equipment, and any equipment that is damaged or too old to be refurbished is broken up where possible for recycling.

'Resellers offer best-of-breed multi-vendor capability,' says Ryzex's Lawson. 'Device choice can depend on what devices fits the customer's needs and what the customer is trying to achieve.

'Companies might end up with a mixed estate to get the best solution for all parts of their business. No device manufacturer can offer the best solution in all cases, so resellers need multiple partnerships to bring it all together. The hardware manufacturers are great innovators in research and development, but don't necessarily have expertise in implementing mobile solutions.'

Resellers are also a source of less familiar hardware. 'The fact that the hardware is from a non-traditional source doesn't mean it will be lacking in quality or performance,' maintains Thomas. 'Although some manufacturers have no direct service support in the UK, that is not a problem in our case because Spirit Data Capture can bridge the gap with our service offerings.'

Varlink distributes various ruggedised computer ranges in the UK, either direct to end users or to various resellers. As well as handheld computers, it offers application software and printers. It also operates dedicated Web sites for some partners such as Psion Teklogix.

At the other end of the scale, Varlink is also the UK distributor for Bluebird's Pidion rugged PDAs and terminals, and has added its own second-year warranty to the one-year warranty available from the manufacturer. Chief executive Mike Pullon comments: 'We have been working with Pidion for two years, and have just delivered four hundred BM-150R PDAs in a single order to a system integrator who selected the product after exhaustive testing. We believe that the combination of improved warranty, lower reseller prices and more variant options will encourage more resellers to offer Pidion products to their customers.'

Device management

While most resellers are able to offer choice and help with implementation, Lawson reckons the more innovative ones now bring more to the table. 'Customers are increasingly demanding device management solutions because, once a mobile solution is in place, uptime is critical. Monitoring what is happening to devices is critical if productivity is to be maintained over the typical five- to seven-year life of a deployment.'

Spirit Data Capture's Kevin Thomas says the adoption of mobile device management, or MDM, solutions is a definite trend for user-companies on the their second or third deployment. 'They have already gone through the pain barrier of post-implementation issues on earlier deployments. They now understand, for example, the importance of being able to get software upgrades to the devices when business needs change or an updated version of the original software becomes available.' MDM is key for this, says Thomas, because doing it manually requires a lot of IT resource.

Device management can, says Lawson, help in critical tasks such as monitoring battery life. 'Managers now realise how critical it is for batteries to last the full shift for maximum productivity. However, there is less awareness that after 12 to 18 months, the battery starts to degrade and will no longer lasts a full shift. Because most hardware estates are of mixed age, it is important to monitor battery life-cycles, so you can predict when battery life will start to be compromised.'

Many resellers offer one or more device management services, either branded as their own solution or from a third-party specialist such as B2M, SOTI, or else from the computer manufacturers themselves. Reports can include device use in the fields, failure rates, type of technology and software on the device. If repair rates are higher than expected, for example, there might be a training issue.

Some device management specialists make a point of designing their systems to appeal to the reseller community. Julie Pures, managing director of B2M, says her company's product range is structured with this very much in mind.

'We have architected mprodigy for *mobility as a service' or *managed service' models,' she says, 'whilst our embedded solution is attractive to OEM software and hardware manufacturers alike who wish to be *powered by' a best-of-breed management solution.

'Furthermore,' she adds, 'we have an ecosystems strategy that means we work collaboratively with a group of partners who are committed to delivering best practice and excellence in mobility.'

Julie Purves says her company's partners have come to appreciate the wisdom of implementing sound device management strategies. 'They all have the vision to realise that mobile solutions are not going to deliver the performance gains and cost savings anticipated without a robust management solution.'

The manufacturer view

From the manufacturer viewpoint, value-added resellers and software partners can provide expertise that is not necessarily available in-house, but is required to secure a sale. Psion Teklogix, for example, has a range of channel and reseller partners, strategic partners and third-party supplier partners.

Channel and reseller partners include VARs, distributors, independent software vendors (ISVs) and system integrators (SIs.) These partners may buy and resell the manufacturers' products and services, or simply work with them to target vertical markets that require robust mobile computing solutions. Strategic partners provide valuable technology or market coverage and domain knowledge, but do not resell the actual devices. Third-party partners offer complementary hardware or software.

For example, Psion Teklogix has just signed a partnership agreement with Jade Communications in which Jade will combine its Mobility as a Service platform with the Ik™n rugged PDA for field service mobility solution. 'More and more businesses are looking to use rugged PDAs to mobilise their workforce, automate paper-based systems, improve customer service, cut operating costs and improve profitability,' says Mark Brackley, managing director of Jade.

Psion Teklogix managing director Paul Westmoreland says: 'Jade's Mobility as a Service solution in particular offers a customisable application and a low cost of entry package for enterprises that are serious about reaping the benefits of mobile technology.'

Motorola has numerous ISV partners for varying software solutions. For example, it teams up with Aldata for warehouse management and voice-picking applications, with Voxware for voice picking, with Blackbay for proof-of-delivery and with Cognito for courier applications and also for proof of delivery. All of these are what Motorola calls Premier ISVs, which means that the software has been approved by Motorola to run on specific devices.