Re: [SAGE] US based company installing computer equipment in theUK

[Robert Haskins <rhaskins@cnetwork.com>]

Lots of excellent feedback on this question. Thanks to Paul Armstrong, 
Richard Chycoski, John Lloyd and Doug Hughes for their responses. Email 
me privately if you want the full emails.

It was a split decision on the question of buying in the US and shipping 
vs buying in the UK. Some issues to think about on this question were 
brought up:

+ cost of equipment in US is lower than in the UK (30-50%)
+ shipping across national boundaries is a headache (taxes, duty, 
customs, etc.)
+ taxes/duty might be recoverable if appropriate paperwork is filed
+ customs repacking may cause shipping damage
+ warranty/service issues on equipment purchased in the US and installed 
elsewhere

Some other excellent points I wasn't aware of/hadn't thought about:

+ power connectors can vary within the UK
+ wireless (802.11x) standards are different
+ telephone standards/plugs vary
+ use "known good" equipment that has been in service for a while rather 
than brand new equipment (if you decide to ship it yourself)
+ be sure all equipment has universal power supplies (so no external 
240-to-120 volt transformers are needed)
+ get proper documentation for bringing tools through customs on a 
"business trip"

Robert Haskins wrote:

> My (US based) company needs to install several Linux machines at the 
> London Internet Exchange (LINX). Being newbies at this sort of thing 
> (installing machines in foreign countries), can anyone offer any 
> pointers as to how to go about doing this? We think that sourcing the 
> equipment in the UK will avoid US export/UK import headaches (is this 
> true?). We have been told that Broadberry Data Systems 
> (http://www.broadberry.co.uk/industrial.html) is a good source (can 
> anyone concur?). Does anyone have other equipment sources that they can 
> recommend?
> 
> Can anyone shed light on the process of installing equipment in foreign 
> countries? Any horror stories you'd care to share? Email me directly and 
> I'll summarize.
> 
> Thanks!
>