Data costs
Information needs to be processed. Information is not free, it cost money to produce it. It takes time to collect the data, input it, process it and produce an output that meets the required purpose.
Four main areas wheere costs incurred in the production of information:
Four main areas wheere costs incurred in the production of information:
HaRDWare
Can be used to collect information, process it and output it. Can also be used to store data for a later date. Organisation of data may need hardware. Intitial costs of hardware are expensive but these can be offset by the length of time the hardware is kept. Once it is acquired, it can be used for other tasks. Ongoing hardware includes repairs, maintainence and upgrade costs.
software
Software lisences need to be purchased, including operating systems and utilities; used to produce information. Licenses can be purchased as a one-off or year to year. Software might also require technical support agreement, support might be bought from the software manufacturer or from a third-party, both costing money. Training costs can also be associated to the software, such as courses and reference manuals. Over time software will need to be upgraded, there could be more purchasing costs.
consumables
Items that get used; such as paper and printing ink/toner.
Personnel
Personnel costs are the costs related to people working in the organisation. Employee's salaries need to be paid for, and people need to be hired to produce information. This is a long-term cost. They may be required to collect, collate, process and output the information. There maybe additional costs for training courses, checking the accuracy. Personnel costs tend to be most expensive.