TCO, TCA and Low Cost of Downtime – the ITG Studies and IBM i

Two studies have recently been completed by the International Technology Group (ITG) that should be of particular interest to the IBM i community. I wrote about the previous ITG study back in February of 2011. Now, almost two years later, the refreshed study confirms what the prior study showed, and what we all know from experience: IBM i on Power Systems is not only a great platform for function and stability, but it’s also a great platform for a company’s bottom line.

The first new study is the ITG study called “IBM i for Midsize Businesses.” The short URL for it is http://bit.ly/IBMiTCO_ITGMidsize and it confirms that the total cost of ownership for IBM i is significantly less than for the typical x86-based competition. Here’s a key chart.

The numbers are impressive. Over a three year period, running a midsize business on the combination of IBM i and Power Systems costs 44% less than running that business on Microsoft Windows Server and x86, and 57% less than Oracle/Linux on x86. These numbers continue the value proposition the platform has had for years, enabled as they are by the integrated nature of IBM i, and the automated nature of DB2 for i.

What remains a surprise for many customers and prospective customers, however, is how those three-year costs break down between Total Cost of Acquisition (TCA) and operational costs. The numbers are in the following chart:

Again, IBM i and Power Systems combine to beat the competition on average for acquisition costs; by 24% vs. Windows and x86 and by 47% vs. Oracle/Linux and x86. This means that ongoing operating expenses for IBM i are less than half of what they are for competitive environments; on average 51% less than Windows and 61% less than Oracle/Linux.

ITG did more than one study this time. They created a study that is of more interest to our larger clients. That study is called “IBM i for Enterprise Businesses: Quantifying the Value of Resilience” because one of the most important aspects of a platform for large clients is “How much money will it cost me when it doesn’t work?” The short URL for that study is http://bit.ly/IBMi_ITGEnterprise.

For this study, ITG looked at large businesses in various industries that run on IBM i, and those in the same industry that run on competitive platforms. I’ve selected on chart that shows the huge difference platform choice makes.

Again the study looks at a three-year period, and again, IBM i + Power Systems is a winning combination. With the integrity and reliability of the system, and with the features we’ve added over time to allow more changes to be made in the environment without disruption, the cost of downtime is significantly lower on IBM i. And this is a trend. A great quote from the study:

"No matter how one rates the value of IBM i’s distinctive strengths, that value is increasing over time."

Please, take a few minutes to look at one or both of the studies. And the next time you encounter someone who wonders if trusting your business to IBM i and Power Systems is the right business decision, point them to the documents. The numbers in the study, plus your personal experiences with the stability and function of IBM i make a pretty powerful story.

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Paul Fenstermacher]

This is indeed great reading and to everyone in the i world you are right, we already know it. Fortunately I'm with a company now where leaving the platform is not a concern but for the last 10 years at 3 LUG meetings a year I heard many discussions where this information was not available to executives at companies that were among the largest users of the platform. At the risk of repeating myself, there is a disconnect somewhere between IBM and the non-i world because this information is not EASILY and READILY available or the discussions and conversations I was involved in would not have happened. Again, don't leave it up to us alone to convince executives who are being bombarded with information from the other side.

[Jean Mikhaleff]

IBM should be number one with a computer like that!

[zhengwj]

I series is a very good platform, Super stability, performance is great, we have I-series has more than 10 years, recent leadership intends to leave the platform, with other platforms. Leave the platform because, he too few users, worried about the future of services, it is difficult to find the right people, the rising cost.

[Anil Mutyala]

I joined IBM i world recently and they are both positive and negative minds. Negative minds are highlighting the platform's sustainability and positive minds are highlighting the platform's reliability.

Thank you Steve. IBM i is is truly a red wood among the server forest.