#HP Inc has a handle on the component supply issues that impacted rival #Dell in its most recent quarter, according to its UK channel boss, Neil Sawyer.
Shortages have fuelled price hikes in a number of components, with DRAM prices doubling since last summer and SSDs also currently at a premium.
But talking to CRN, Sawyer said HP Inc bought ahead after anticipating some of the component shortages - particularly around SSD and panels - which he claimed has enabled it to achieve consistent supply and keep prices steady.
"We are very keen to ensure that message is going out to the channel because I think some have struggled to get products with particular components. But that is certainly not the case with HP," said Sawyer.
In its Q1 2018 conference call, Dell Technologies said it had been forced to raise PC and server prices due to rising component costs, adding that it expects the issue to act a headwind for the remainder of the year.
Sawyer, however, claimed that HP Inc's channel partners will see no changes, despite Gartner recently confirming that DRAM prices have doubled since the middle of 2016. The component price hikes began affecting the market in Q1 of 2017 and will continue throughout the year, Gartner analyst Mikako Kitagawa said.
"Certainly for us, from a pricing point of view and discounting perspective, we are consistent," Sawyer said. "There are no planned changes in the short or medium term for that matter, because we have a consistent supply chain, and we have hedged our business."
HP Inc grew its PC shipments faster than any of its key rivals in Q1, according to Gartner. It now trails Lenovo by just 0.4 percentage points following a 6.5 per cent annual hike in unit sales during the quarter.
HP Inc may have not been in this position had it still been part of the wider HP organisation that split in November 2015, Sawyer claimed.
"12 to 18 months on from the separation, the big change we've seen is that our supply chain is a lot simpler, and therefore there are fewer parts of the equation and we can make clearer decisions at board level," he said.
"It's about consistency of supply. Particularly with larger resellers that are looking to supply large corporations with continual roll outs of products, you need consistency in the supply of your components and the products that these components fit into. We are very confident about our supply chain and anticipated some of these issues way ahead of time."
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