Capital Allowances – act quickly to take advantage

Posted on 11/29/2011 by Microcare

The cost of buying new assets can be reduced greatly by taking advantage of capital allowances – but major changes mean their impact will weakened after April 2012.

Currently spending on qualifying plant and machinery up to an annual maximum of £100,000 is eligible for the 100 per cent tax relief but from April that will be reduced to £25,000.

Capital allowances allow businesses to write off the cost of capital assets against taxable income.

In addition Writing Down Allowances will also be reduced from 20 per cent to 18 per cent for the main rate and from 10 per cent to eight per cent for the special rate.

If you are planning a big investment such as an IT or telecoms system in the next year, it makes sense if possible to bring it into the current tax year to get the most advantage of capital allowances.

Are your current IT and telecoms systems optimised for maximum efficiency for the way your business runs today?

There has been a big change in the way companies with more home working, field workers and regional offices – but many businesses have not upgraded their systems to manage these new ways of working.

For more information on how Microcare Systems can help your business contact us on 0800 515 513 or visit www.microcare-systems.co.uk

More news coming soon…..

Posted in Telecomms News | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Move into the fast lane with Microcare

Posted on 11/04/2011 by Microcare

If you need fast upload speeds, Ethernet First Mile (EFM) from Microcare offers an economic and robust solution.

It is the perfect upgrade from SDSL or Legacy Line Services two megabyte leased lines if you need more bandwidth but you do not need as much as Ethernet and its one gigabit capacity – and higher price.

The improved connectivity means better performance for internet telephone, data, video and day-to-day business activity.

We provide back-up options, round-the-clock UK-based technical support and guarantee a Service Level Agreement of an 8 hour guaranteed fix in the event of a circuit failure.

Microcare has provided EFM to a number of companies, among the latest being Tushingham Moore, one of the UK’s leading retail property consultancies, based in Manchester.

Like all the technologies Microcare works with, the company uses it itself so you can be sure that they understand it in a real world working environment.

Microcare fully project-manage the installation from initial order to configuration of the router and circuit set-up and keep you up to speed with progress.

For more information call us free on 0800 515 513.

Posted in The Business of Systems | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Talking telephone numbers:

Posted on 10/21/2011 by Microcare

The value of the unified communications market in Europe, the Middle East and Asia will triple by 2015, according to a study.

Unified communications were worth around $5.7 billion in 2010 but will grow to $16.6 billion in the next four years, says the study by the International Data Corporation.

That’s a compound annual growth rate of 23.7 per cent, reports Comms Business magazine. To read the full article go to  Comms Business News…

Posted in Telecomms News | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Protect yourself – for the price of a cup of coffee!

Posted on 10/06/2011 by Microcare

How reliant is your business on its communications infrastructure? The answer for almost all of us is “very”.

If the phones, the lines or network goes down, your business could be suffering until service is restored. At the very least it’s frustrating for your customers and your staff.

So what do you do? Keep your fingers crossed and hope the worst never happens? Or make a small investment that delivers peace of mind and a speedy response should you need it.

Microcare offers three packages starting from just £250 a year. The bronze package offers a 16-hour response while our most popular cover – silver – reduces the time to eight hours.

Go for the super-fast gold package and our experienced and dedicated engineers will be onto it within four hours.

They probably won’t even have to come to your premises. On average, Microcare receives 1,200 fault reports a year and more than 90 per cent of them can be fixed over the phone.

In 95 per cent of cases we’ll have you up and running within the response time but sometimes that is not possible and if that happens we will work with you to get a short-term solution while the main problem is fixed.

Our service has been rewarded with extraordinary loyalty – 95 per cent of our customers have been with us for more than 10 years, renewing their cover each time.

With our maintenance packages there are no hidden surprises – they all include time, labour, travel and parts. Repairs are carried out between 8.30am and 6pm, Monday to Friday.

For more information call Microcare free on 0800 513 513.

Posted in Your Business | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Stay-at-home workers help the economy

Posted on 10/03/2011 by Microcare

Employers have turned to remote working as part of a package of measures to protect their businesses and jobs from the effects of the recession.

The Confederation of British Industry’s 2010 employment survey found that 35 per cent had introduced flexible working including remote working during the year.

The government has also embraced home working as one way in which travel disruption can be reduced in London during the Olympics.

The Office of National Statistics says that in 2010 there were 1.3 million homeworkers in the UK and 3.7 million people sometimes work from home or use home as a base.

According to the CBI report, called Picking up the Pace: the CBI/Harvey Nash Employment Trends Survey, 87 per cent of staff understood the need to change working patterns in order to protect jobs.

The annual CBI survey has consistently shown employers and employees taking up the opportunities offered by remote working as technology has improved – in 2004 it was made available by 11 per cent of employers but by 2009 it had risen to 66 per cent.

The Olympics is expected to attract close to a million spectators, competitors, officials and journalists, making huge demands on the capital’s transport infrastructure.

The government has set a target of reducing general demand for transport by 30 per cent during the 17 days of the Games.

Transport Minister Norman Baker has called for businesses and individuals to think creatively to reduce the strain on the London transport network.

He said: “I’m the first transport minister to have official responsibility for alternatives to travel and the Olympics will be a key time to really embrace these ideas.

“Of course, the government has to play its part – at the Department for Transport we’ll be cutting our travel footprint by half during the Games with similar initiatives across Whitehall.”

Microcare Systems is well placed to advise businesses on the technological aspects of remote working – contact us on 0800 515 513 TODAY.

Posted in The Business of Systems | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Microcare – passion, knowledge, partnership

Posted on 09/27/2011 by Microcare

Passion and knowledge is at the heart of what Microcare does for its clients across the private, public and voluntary sectors.

Since 1996, the company has been providing tailored, cost-effective telecoms solutions, underpinned by an almost unique level of strategic business partnerships with all the main systems manufacturers.

In the last five years the services offered by Microcare have been expanded to include network services, cabling infrastructure, security and fire systems.

The company’s aim is simple – to ensure that you obtain the right solution for your business now and for the future.

It’s all about developing long-term partnerships with clients to support future communications needs – we don’t believe in quick fixes and sticking plaster solutions.

To be able to recommend a particular solution, Microcare has to know intimately how it works and by using everything they sell they gain key insights into how products perform in the real world.

So when Microcare recommends a solution, you can be sure it has been put through its paces.

It is this passion for world-class service that has enabled Microcare to build an enviable client base which includes the National Health Service, Ministry of Defence, Citizens’ Advice Bureau and property maintenance and metering company PH Jones.

But most important are our people, the backbone on which Microcare’s reputation is built.

We offer impartial advice on solutions and back it up with installation and maintenance by engineers trained to the highest standards,

The Microcare approach to passion and understanding of the market is exemplified in Managing Director Carl Lowe.

Carl started as a customer service advisor for the company and over the last 12 years has worked in every department including engineering, sales, corporate sales and management.

So, no matter how large or small your business or where you are located, cutting edge support is only a call away.

Speak to a member of our dedicated team TODAY on 0800 515 513.

 

Posted in The Business of Systems | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment