“Armenian IT sphere will remain in the outskirts without a developed market of consultation services”

Interview of Gagik Khachatryan, “LANS” Company’s Director on Business Development, to Mediamax Agency and Itel.am portal

- LANS is one of the largest companies functioning in the sphere of information technologies, which is considered a priority for Armenia. What are the main directions of your activity?

- The Company was founded in early 90s, and initially it was mainly involved in assemblage and supply of computers and accessory equipment. At that time, it was beyond one’s wildest dreams to have a personal computer with an appropriate printer. Now the situation has undergone fundamental changes: complex IT infrastructures, integrated into the global information network, are set up in many organizations. The infrastructure is composed of powerful servers, complex network equipment, tens and hundreds of computers.

As of today, we position LANS as a system integrator, which offers partners complex solutions of random difficulty for such tasks. These solutions may include supply and installation of computer and network equipment, protection systems and information storage, establishment of cable management, consultation services, technical maintenance of the installed systems.

- LANS is a business partner for famous companies, such as Dell and IBM. What advantages does this fact give the company and your customers?

- LANS is a business partner of many leading world producers, which function in all the above-mentioned spheres. Among the advantages, which our company gains, I would first of all single out the opportunity to regularly train our specialists and the technical and expert support that we receive. And, naturally, partnership prices for all types of equipment. All these advantages are automatically transferred to our customers, who we can offer optimal solutions to their tasks, qualified technical service and good prices.

- What are the basic requirements for gaining the status of a business partner?

- Producer companies build the system of their partnership relations in different ways. In each company, as a rule, there are a few levels of partnership, and for the lowest of them there are no special requirements put forwards, but they are neither any special advantages provided. The necessary conditions to be a high level partner for companies, such as Dell and IBM, is the presence of high quality certified specialists and a responsible attitude towards one’s partnership commitments.

- Besides supply and installation of equipment, LANS also deals with laying local computer networks. What are the standards you work by? Which large organization do you cooperate with?

- We consider installation of networks not as a separate direction of our activity, but as a part of the task to provide integrated solutions. Many of our customers already realize the importance of such an approach. What concerns standards, there is a system of international standards, by which works our company, which has all the necessary certificates and the corresponding ISO certificate as well. Our special equipment, qualified employees and the used materials allow LANS installing networks of any category, including the highest ones. At present, 5E category networks are most often used in Armenia. They fully meet the present requirements. However, certain organizations, in particular, banks, already make a transition to the highest 6th category, and we have everything that is necessary to provide installation of networks of the 6th category as well.

We have network installation practice in both very large organizations as well (for instance, the network of Synopsys Company for over 5 thousand end points) and in organizations, located all over Armenia (for instance, networks in “ArmenTel” and “VTB Bank” subdivisions).

- What level of technical maintenance do you offer? What are the terms of your guarantee maintenance?

- Qualified technical maintenance plays a more and more important role. For many organizations, such as banks, supermarket chains or communication companies, a serious malfunction of equipment may lead to huge losses. This is why such companies purchase and install complex equipment only if there is a certified organization, which realizes technical maintenance. LANS received certificates from Dell and IBM last year for maintenance of their servers and storage systems, and, in particular, due to this many companies made a decision to purchase complex solutions, offered by these producers.

The guarantee terms depend on the type of equipment and its producers. LANS also provides its own guarantees, which in many cases exceed the guarantee terms of the producers. As to complex technical solutions, LANS guarantees make 3 years. Under an agreement with a customer, there is also an expanded guarantee provided by our company, which provides for not only longer terms, but also a different level of maintenance, in particular, next business day maintenance. This means that our employee realizes diagnosis of the malfunction and eliminates it in the course of a day. The guarantee for cable computer networks is as a rule lifelong.

- Has the price policy of LANS been reconsidered recently?

- Naturally it has been reconsidered, since the entire equipment is imported. However the equipment, which had been imported before the recent devaluation of AMD, as well as the cost of our works, have practically undergone no increase in price. And, naturally, in case there are long-term agreements, we install the cables and network equipment at prices, stated in those agreements.

- There are a few companies functioning in Armenia in the sphere of computer equipment sale and installation of networks. How do you manage to compete with them?

- Many companies are involved in sale of computer equipment in Armenia, however the majority of them is oriented to a wide circle of consumers, that is to say, they offer mass consumption items, which are imported mainly from UAE. Concerning the production of brand companies, there aren’t many suppliers of their production, and there are friendly, partnership relation formed between us. We believe that competition is a good thing. This helps us learn, find and offer our customers new types of services, in particular, complex services: choice of solutions-supply-installation-setup-maintenance. If there is no healthy competition, Armenia will fall behind the developing world forever. The success of LANS in competitive struggle in many respects depends on our team, which is composed of professionals, employees, who are devoted to our company, and many of them work with us from the very first day of the company’s establishment. And the leadership of the company in its turn tries to establish a favorable atmosphere, the opportunity to upgrade qualification and good work conditions.

- Today, many companies are discontent with the tax policy, especially, as to collection of VAT on the border. Does LANS face problems in the given sphere?

- The current mechanisms of taxation, in particular, VAT collection on the border, simply aim at replenishment of the current budget. The task, of course, is important, but it does not aim at solution of strategic tasks. These mechanisms do not take into account the specific nature of IT sphere development, where prices, development directions change quickly; almost every day new products appear. We have to pay VAT not only for goods, which have not been sold yet, but even for goods, which will never be sold. And a key task, such as guaranteed substitution by the producer of its equipment, which has gone out of action, becomes simply impossible without volume losses for companies, which realize guarantee maintenance. 

If the authorities really consider IT sphere a priority, they need to elaborate special mechanisms of taxation, taking into account the specific nature and the dynamics of IT sphere development.

- In which direction do you outline the development of LANS? Is involvement of your company in other spheres possible?

- As I have already mentioned, the main development direction is provision of more and more effective, integrated and complex solutions to our partners, providing them with qualified technical support in the process of setting up and developing their IT infrastructure. 

I would like to highlight two aspects of the given development strategy of the company. First of all, it is assistance to securing information safety for our customers. This is of special importance for banks, where, loss, theft or damage of information may be catastrophic. In this sphere, we can offer the best modern solutions, which meet international standards. And we already work in the given direction with a few largest banks.

Another direction is provision of consultation services in design, installation and operation of IT infrastructure. Today, not a single organization can afford having qualified specialists in all IT spheres, but it is simply impossible to work without them. But in our country, either under own inertia, or because of our mentality, not many companies are ready to pay for knowledge. We are sure that without a developed market of consultations services, IT sphere of Armenia will remain in the outskirts of global development, and we try to make this confidence clear for our partners and customers.