I have a deep affection for INDeX, which recently went out of production. Suddenly, we are being asked to buy used systems, and I feel as if I am betraying an old friend when I have to gracefully decline.

This is yet another formerly buoyant used market that has gone very soft indeed. It was a system that seemed to have been designed and marketed by people who actually had an understanding of the telecommunications industry, rather than a far east electronics giant who saw telephony as another branch of consumer electronics.

It was packed with sensible features, few “show-stopping” black holes of programming stupidity, and was supported well by professionals who you could actually reach and knew what they were talking about.

“Fast Eddie Telecom”, or “Wayne Carr Communications” could not simply buy this kit and start selling from a lock-up to make a fast buck and feed a car and lap-dancing habit. No, sir. The distribution strategy was well thought out, and exclusive; a few carefully-chosen resellers, well-nurtured and carefully placed. And to sell this equipment, you needed to attend around six gruelling courses, and pass a stiff exam. Oh, and I don’t have space to telly you about the ease of slotting in an INDeX cassette into any slot in the chassis, or the elegant looking phones, etc, etc. It could cope with most applications thrown at it by customers.

So, fourteen years after it was launched, the system that was wonderfully equipped and professionally-supported is literally being binned. The market is awash with used, perfectly reliable systems. Goodness, I used to lose sales because it was too expensive. Now, it’s not worth a bean if you are selling. I shudder to think what users paid for their systems.

Once again, VOIP is the villain; the rise and rise of Cisco and Mitel have driven it out. Plus, towards the end, after ownership of the company changed, the slot-based licensing and keycode restrictive nonsense began to be implemented. Certain early cassettes could not be used with more recent processors. Charges for this, that and the other. Complexity for the sake of commercial gain. No longer the freedom of empty slots waiting to be filled.

So, would we buy your used SDX Avaya INDeX system? Well, we’d at least like to know about it, so if you are planning to get in touch, we’ll need to know the following:-

• Type of cassettes (AL 0-16, DSLC32, etc). The types are written on the spine, like books on a shelf.
• PCS number of the cassettes (basically, the revision number). Again, on the spine, nice and simple and clear.
• Any keycodes for the Windows Operating Console or Voice Mail
• Phones. DT3, DT5, TT3. Or the later 2030 or 2050. (Good news! there may actually be some value in the latter!)

So, we may just be able to find a new home for your system. But don’t wait up, or plan to buy a yacht.

A sad end for a perfectly serviceable and outstanding system. We feel almost dishonest…

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 1st, 2008 at 8:22 pm and is filed under Telecoms Recycling, Avaya SDX INDeX. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.