New research has shown that IT
replacement cycles have remained steady, despite the recession.

Data from Siemens Financial Services
revealed that the average refresh periods for hardware, software
and office equipment have not changed significantly in the last
three years.

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In the UK the average replacement
cycle was 34 months, while it was 37 months in Germany and 38
months in France.

The study, which questioned 1,500
companies in the UK, France and Germany, also revealed that 76.8
percent of UK firms rely on cash to fund equipment acquisition;
this is similar to French businesses (75.6 percent), but higher
than German firms (67.5 percent).

“Too few firms are utilising asset
finance to acquire equipment, and remain stuck in the cash
purchasing trap,” the study said.

“As a result, although companies
remain committed to continued equipment investment, a proportion
are not managing to access sufficient finance – further fuelling
the current downturn in business investment across all three
countries.”

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But lessors can find comfort in the
fact that 24 percent of European companies are looking at
alternative methods, such as leasing and asset finance, to fund new
equipment.

“There is huge potential in Europe’s
main economies for financial managers to make more use of leasing
and asset finance,” Derek Ryan, sales director at Siemens Financial
Services in the UK, added.

Separately, the Finance & Leasing
Association’s latest business finance figures showed that in the
second quarter of 2009, the amount of asset finance provided to
businesses was down by 39 percent compared with the same period in
2008.

Jason T Hesse