- Essex Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner

Report reference number:: 165 – 23
Classification:: Official
Title of report:: Laptop Replacement Programme (Technical Refresh)
Area of county / stakeholders affected:: Essex Police and Kent Police
Report by:: Ashley Steel – IT EUC Support and Field Operations Manager
Date of report:: 21.11.23
Enquiries to:: Ashley Steel / Steph Gill

1. Executive Summary

To ensure that all agile working officers and staff have a laptop device which meets user requirements, is reliable, meets all relevant security standards and is in good working order, the Technical Refresh programme historically replaces all laptops after a four-year period. The oldest model of laptop device in current use is now 4+ years old and due for replacement as part of the approved IT Technical Refresh
Business Case.

2. Recommendations

This is a joint Kent Police and Essex Police contract. It is recommended that the Essex Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner signs the contract appended to this report to provide 683 laptops for Essex Police at a cost of £580,010 one-off capital.
The total contract is for 1,505 laptops at a value of £1,278,061 and includes 822 laptops for Kent Police and 683 for Essex Police. By procuring for both forces under one contract allows us to gain the best volume discount from the suppliers.
The laptops have been procured via the 7F Commerical Services, Technology Products & Associated Services 2 (TPAS2) framework and funded by the IT Technical Refresh Business Case which was approved via decision report 006-23 (IT Technical Refresh 2023/24) in April 2023.

The breakdown of this one-off capital cost per force is:

Essex Police = 683 units at £849.21 = £580,010
Kent Police = 822 units at £849.21 = £698,050

3. Background to the Proposal

This replacement programme is to replace the oldest laptop devices in our laptop estate in both forces. These devices were purchased 4+ years ago and have now reached the end of their planned life cycle. The devices are all out of warranty with an increasing failure rate which is to be expected for the age and model. The forces’ strategy is to replace laptop devices every four years and the funding to enable
replacement in 2023/24 was built in and approved by the PFCC in April 2023, as part of the Technical Refresh Business case.
Laptop devices form a large part of the user devices in the hands of officers and staff, enabling them to communicate and access systems and data vital to serving the public of Essex and Kent.

Research has been undertaken to identify suitable devices in alignment with force operational, security, Operating System (OS) and National Enabling Programme (NEP) / Police Digital Service (PDS) requirements and the Dell Latitude 3340 model selected.

4. Proposal and Associated Benefits

This proposal is to replace 1,505 laptop devices, of which 683 are for Essex Police (the order total is for the replacement of Kent devices too, 822), for Essex and Kent Police officers and staff as part of our IT Technical Refresh rolling replacement programme. Operational benefits are that officers can continue to use laptop devices that are reliable and fully supported. The Dell 3340 model also enables the future use of the next iteration of Microsoft Windows OS (Windows 11).

5. Options Analysis

There are three options – To replace some or all of the old Dell 3390 laptop devices, or not to replace them.
The recommended option is to replace the first tranche of Dell 3390 laptops that are now 4+ years old for 1,505 police officers / staff.
The second option is to not replace them. This will result in officers having a laptop device that is not reliable or supported by Microsoft or the manufactures to enable operational policing. As the devices fail, they are no longer supported under warranty and will be classified as beyond economical repair. Also aged devices may not be able to support / meet requirements for future iterations of the Microsoft
operating system which could lead to a security risk to the business. Whilst a very small stock is available for replacement of failed devices, this will very quickly be depleted and the potential of officers not having a laptop device will become a real possibility.

The third option is to replace some of the laptops with Samsung Desktop Experience (DEX) capable mobile devices. We need to understand fully the implications of DEX lap docks / mobile phone use, different levels of MS licences and how many laptops vs. mobile phones we need ongoing as they are all linked. A full review of the device allocation model is planned in over the next few months with full operational engagement, considering our experience from the DEX pilots, which will inform our device technical refresh for 2024/25 onwards. The pilot of the lap docks has shown that there are some areas to iron out and develop to ensure that officers can operate fully, and therefore we are not recommending an immediate move over.
The laptop contract for 1,505 devices (funded from the 2023/24 Technical Refresh) will be for the usual replacement of the oldest laptops (4+ years), which are primarily not in use by those teams being considered for DEX / lap docks. If any new laptops do have to be issued for those teams they will be taken back in when replaced by lap docks and re-issued out, and the number of laptops for the next refresh (in 2024/25) adjusted appropriately.

6. Consultation and Engagement

The options and recommendations listed have been developed after consultation and engagement with the supplier and the IT technical support teams.

7. Strategic Links

Replacing our aged laptop devices will ensure that officers and staff have a reliable, secure piece of essential equipment and can continue to provide operational policing for both counties, thus maintaining a force that is skilled, equipped and enabled, in line with the Police and Crime Plan 2021-2024

8. Police operational implications

Replacing our aged laptop devices will ensure that officers have a reliable, secure piece of essential equipment and can continue to provide operational policing for both counties.

9. Financial implications

Capital funding of £648,900 for the 2023/24 laptop replacement programme was approved as part of the IT Technical Refresh Business Case via decision report 006- 23 in April 2023. Competitive procurement processes have secured a lower unit price for the laptops than first quoted when the budget was set. The unit cost was estimated at £930, but the market price through tender is £849.21. This is cost avoidance of £80.79 per unit.
Essex’s total cost for the replacement programme is £580,010, representing cost avoidance of £55,180 and £121,589 cost avoidance for the total (Essex and Kent) contract value from the budget set (£1,399,650).

The underspend of £55,180 capital budget will remain within the overall capital budget and used against increased costs on other assets (monitors / printers / docks etc).
There is no revenue funding required.
There are no cashable savings anticipated. Efficiency benefits associated with this contract will be seen with the stable technology officers and staff work on when it comes to their laptop devices. The new laptops will have newer technology that improves performance.

10. Legal Implications

There are no legal implications arising from this purchase.

11. Staffing implications

These laptops will be deployed as part of the IT laptop rolling replacement programme. No additional resources are required to build and roll out these laptops.

12. Equality and Diversity implications

There are no equality, diversity and inclusion implications associated with the purchasing of these devices.

13. Risks and Mitigations

The risk refers to the force not proceeding with the recommendation. In this instance, it is highly likely that officers will no longer have a reliable and personal issue laptop device that meets security and operating system (OS) requirements with which to conduct their operational duties. Providing laptops that have optimum performance mitigates the loss of officer and staff time waiting for aging technology
to perform (hanging / blue screen etc) and reduces time travelling to get equipment serviced / fixed / replaced.

14. Governance Boards

The Technical Refresh Business was previously approved via decision report 006-23
o COG – 06/09/23 and 29/11/23
o Commercial Executive Board – 30/09/23
o PFCC’s Strategic Board – 18/12/23

15.Links to Future Plans

This will ensure that officers have reliable laptop devices and functionality for the next four years. The Dell 3340 laptop device model also enables the future use of Microsoft Windows 10 22H2 and Windows 11 and the functionality and associated benefits that this will deliver.

16.Background Papers and Appendices

Appendices
Framework Schedule 6a (Short Order Form Template and Call-Off Schedules) Ref. C18538
Contract Award Approval (Reg 84) Report
Background papers
Decision report 006-23 (IT Technical Refresh 2023/24) signed in April 2023