Equipment used in an evaluation pool should be in great condition…. If its been used on one evaluation and is therefore no longer new, it needs to be as close to ‘as new’, as it can possibly be, with only a little bit of additional stickering on the box, and slight wear and tear on the packing being the only indication that the product has been used already.

Keeping equipment in great condition takes a lot of effort and energy, on top of great and well defined processes.

For printers it involves managing the consumable levels actively to achieve the balance between cost and customer experience. For any computing product it involves a clear procedure with regard imaging and reimaging. Nowadays most IT products have some form of computer or network connection in them so we have to be aware of hard discs that cleaning, firmware that needs checking and network connections that need validating.

One absolute essential is that equipment that is not good enough to put out on evaluation is clearly flagged as such and is put on a status that clearly flags that it cannot be put out on loan, and in so doing is immediately put into a resolution process . The AD EVALUATION TEAM process is that equipment is put on Problem! status, with a clear recording of what the issue is and what is needed to fix it. Equipment on Problem! cannot be shipped,  and get constant management attention to ensure the resolution is progress chased through to completion.

One other significant input, is that if an evaluation program is structured in a way that THE AD EVALUATION TEAM has ownership of the equipment and funds itself by the revenue generated by selling the equipment, then there is a tremendous incentive to keep the equipment in great condition.