Memory prices are rising. Lead times are stretching. Vendor pricing is becoming unpredictable.

For IT decision makers who traditionally cash-purchase their equipment, the current RAM crisis is more than a supply issue — it’s a budgeting and planning risk.

Here’s what’s happening, and more importantly, what you can do about it.

What is the RAM Crisis?

The current memory shortage is the result of a perfect storm across global markets.

Several forces are colliding:

1. AI is consuming global silicon supply: The explosive growth of AI infrastructure is driving unprecedented demand for silicon. Major semiconductor manufacturers are prioritising AI and demand from the Hyperscale datacentre providers. That shift is pulling supply away from traditional IT solutions, such as end user compute and IT infrastructure.
2. Ongoing geopolitical disruption: Supply chains remain fragile. Restrictions and instability involving countries such as Russia, Ukraine and China continue to limit access to raw materials required to manufacture silicon and memory components. Add tariffs, political uncertainty and global trade tension, and the result is volatility across the entire technology supply chain.
3. Vendor Pricing Instability: We are now seeing vendors protecting themselves against market swings. For example, Cisco has publicly stated it reserves the right to withdraw or reprice bids after orders are placed if global component pricing shifts. That means even agreed pricing is no longer guaranteed.

Across the industry, things are unsettled.

What this means for your IT Estate

In practical terms, organisations are experiencing:

• Rising laptop and memory pricing
• Extended lead times for base-level configurations
• Uncertainty on future hardware availability
• Reduced pricing protection from vendors
• Budget forecasting becoming harder

For organisations that typically cash-purchase equipment, this creates real exposure:

• Capital outlay is increasing
• Budget cycles are harder to manage
• Refresh timing becomes a gamble

So what can you do?

Practical solutions to mitigate the RAM Crisis

Let’s move from problem to action.

1. If you’re planning a refresh, bring it forward.
   If you are considering a refresh in the next 6–12 months, the most important move is this: Plan now.
   Prices are unlikely to stabilise in the short term. Availability may tighten further. The longer you wait, the more uncertainty you introduce into your estate planning.
   Even if you ultimately delay deployment, locking in a strategy early gives you control. Waiting increases risk.
2. Consider leasing instead of Cash Purchase:
   For organisations that traditionally buy outright, this is the moment to re-evaluate funding strategy. Leasing is no longer just about spreading cost. In the current environment, it is a risk-mitigation tool.
   
   Residual Value Investment reduces your cost
   Unlike traditional leasing providers who rely on extending agreements, our model is different. We want the equipment back.
   At end of term, we refurbish and reintroduce devices into the market.
   That allows us to invest a residual value (RV) into the first lifecycle — your lease. In a rising price environment, that RV investment helps offset cost increases proportionately.
   You are not absorbing 100% of today’s inflated pricing.
   
   Protect Cash Flow during price spikes
   Higher hardware costs do not have to mean higher capital outlay.
   
   Leasing allows you to:
   • Avoid large upfront capital expenditure
   • Spread refresh costs over 3–4 years
   • Maintain predictable quarterly payments
   • Protect working capital for strategic projects

In volatile markets, predictability becomes valuable.

3. Already Refreshed? Use Sale and Leaseback
If you have recently completed a refresh, you are not excluded.

A Sale and Leaseback allows you to:

• Sell your newly deployed equipment
• Release capital back into your business
• Move to a structured, predictable subscription model

This injects cash into your organisation while maintaining operational continuity.

In uncertain markets, liquidity matters.

4. Solve availability issues with refurbished corporate devices
One of the biggest current risks is hardware availability. What is available today may not be available tomorrow. This is where refurbished enterprise-grade devices become a strategic advantage.

Our 2nd Life IT range includes professionally refurbished devices from:

• Dell
• Lenovo
• HP

These are corporate-spec devices refurbished to enterprise standards. Standard Specification (Future-Proofed):

• 14” screen
• 512GB SSD
• 16GB RAM as standard

That 16GB RAM is already installed. So, there is:

No memory price increase
No configuration uncertainty
No waiting for upgraded builds

2nd Life It: Certainty of Availability

These devices are already in stock. They are assets previously leased, professionally refurbished and ready for redeployment. In a market struggling with lead times, immediate availability is a competitive advantage.

2nd Life It: Cost Efficiency

Refurbished enterprise devices can cost up to 40% less than buying new.

At a time when base models are rising sharply in price, that differential becomes even more significant.

Future-Proofing Your IT Strategy

It wasn’t long ago that the world faced a major hardware shortage during the 2020 pandemic. Demand surged overnight. Supply chains stalled. Lead times stretched for months. Now we are experiencing another disruption — driven by AI demand and geopolitical instability. It is reasonable to assume this will not be the last cycle of volatility.

The question becomes: Do you want to be exposed to each market shock? Or do you want structural protection?

A lifecycle-based leasing model provides:

• Predictable refresh cycles
• Built-in residual value
• Hardware return and reuse strategy
• Reduced exposure to resale value risk
• Greater financial control during global instability

Instead of reacting to each crisis, you operate within a controlled framework. That stability is increasingly valuable.

Regain Control in an unpredictable market

The RAM crisis is real.
Pricing is volatile.
Lead times are uncertain.
Vendor commitments are shifting.
​​​​​​​
But you are not without options.

With the right refresh timing, funding strategy and lifecycle planning, you can:

• Reduce financial exposure
• Improve cost predictability
• Solve availability challenges
• Future-proof your estate

Speak to us

If you are planning a refresh — or simply want to understand how exposed your organisation is to current memory volatility — let’s have a conversation. We can model the impact, explore funding alternatives, and design a strategy that protects your IT estate from the next wave of disruption.

In unstable markets, control is an advantage. Let’s help you regain it > https://www.innovent.co.uk/contact