Phoenix will still deliver 3000s from HP to customer sites

After a rousing fourth quarter where it got “slammed” with HP 3000 orders, North American 3000 distributor Client Systems has shifted its business to its Phoenix 3000 used equipment model. CEO Mike Murphy reports that the Denver-area company is still doing business primarily with the authorized HP 3000 channel partners for now, not a direct-to-customer model like resellers Genisys and Epic Systems. Murphy said it became apparent that many 3000 shops were not ready to start spending on migration during 2003, especially when the new system orders started to roll in during his quarter that ended on Oct. 31.

“It was a lot of evidence that not all of the customers were quite ready to migrate. We have ISVs and application partners, and it made sense for them to be able to sell customers these 3000s,” Murphy said. “There were a few new customers, but most of them were upgrades. Some of their plans may have been delayed, and their true focus may have been on securing their environment and protecting their investment.”

If there’s been any substantial change in the 3000 hardware ecosystem since Oct. 31, it seems to have been in HP’s own infrastructure. Murphy said that HP has moved its factory where the 3000s ship from Roseville, Calif. to Houston. HP will still send out 3000s in the months and years to come, but these will be used systems, taken in trades to HP 9000 conversions or re-acquired as leases expire. In a letter to his base of HP channel partners, Murphy said that Phoenix has “a variety of older server inventory including 9x8, 9x9 and 99x servers. In addition, we do have a number of A-Class and N-Class servers available.”

For the moment, Phoenix is working out “some logistical snags” in getting the HP factory in Houston to send it used 3000 systems. When HP reassigned its EMR remarketed systems business to Houston, the vendor introduced a new cast of players to the 3000 inventory, and Murphy said these HP employees usually have to be brought up to date with the HP 3000. But that kind of re-acquaintance is a typical task with any firm that does business with HP today. Interex is facing a similar mission this year, as the user group works to make an impression on Compaq staff now working inside HP.

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