Even companies without Dell kit should take action, says Gartner.
Even companies without Dell kit should take action, says Gartner.
Dell's recent recall of 4.1 million notebook batteries which the firm admits could pose a serious fire risk should act as a wake up call to all companies, even those without Dell kit, Gartner noted today.
All firms should gather asset information to assess the magnitude of the problem within their own laptops, and ensure that a process is in place to implement the replacements.
They should also prepare plans in the event that they may face problems of a similar magnitude.
Gartner warned that companies that do not have Dell laptops should not rest on their laurels.
"If you use other manufacturers' notebooks, employ this event as a fire drill that will enable you to understand how effectively your processes might handle such a recall," Gartner advised.
"The scale of this recall reinforces the importance of maintaining detailed and up-to-date asset-tracking information. While the probability of encountering a problematic battery is close to one in a million, the risk cannot be ignored.
"Since Dell has stated that users will not initially receive replacement batteries for two to four weeks, Gartner advises companies immediately to work at resolving this problem."
Dell announced on 14 August that it has recalled 4.1 million batteries used in Inspiron, Latitude, Precision and XPS notebooks shipped between 1 April 2004 and 8 July 2006.
Due to a manufacturing problem, under very rare conditions the Sony-built battery packs can fail catastrophically, resulting in fire.
While fewer than 12 incidents have been reported, the potential for serious property damage necessitates a complete recall.
Gartner noted that reports of problems with the Dell batteries surfaced on the internet for several months after the story was broken by vnunet.com's sister publication The Inquirer.
According to Gartner, this latest incident is reminiscent of previous issues with batteries in notebooks offered by Dell, Apple and other vendors. This time, however, a far greater number of notebooks are affected.
Dell has stated that about 15 per cent of all Dell notebooks sold during the affected period are subject to the recall.
"At present, the problem is believed to be limited to Dell notebooks," said the Gartner report.
"However, Sony, which manufactures batteries used in Dell notebooks, also provides batteries for many other manufacturers of notebook computers, so it is possible that other manufacturers might encounter similar problems.
"The problem with the batteries originates within the cell manufacturing process, and other manufacturers use the same cells. Dell's design appears to exacerbate the problem, resulting in a failure level that justifies this recall. "
Owners of Dell laptops can check to see whether their systems are affected by visiting the Dell Battery Recall website.