IBM World Wide spare part experience

[Roland]

Hi all there wherever you are,

since January this year I work for my german company in Taiwan. I took both of my ThinkPads with me: The older A21p for daily work and my beloved A31p for my more demanding work. Now I looked at IBMs online store for the part number of a chinese keyboard for my A31p and found it.
The keyboards IBM offer are marked as consumer replaceable parts and the price for german customers is 40 Euro what is not very expensive (^-^).
However, because I am in Taiwan I asked IBM Taipei to sell me the keyboard or even replace it for me. The answer was very strange to me: They replace my german keyboard against a german or even english one but not against a chinese one, because I have a european model number. Hmm, such an answer I did not expect. I really fight hard with them but finally without any success. So I order the chinese keyboard online at the german online store and got some hours later a call via my german mobile phone. IBM Germany is very sorry that they can't sell me the keyboard. The model even should not be available for ordering in the online shop and IBM do not have any chinese keyboard in europe on stock. If I am in Taiwan I should ask the local IBM service for this keyboard. After telling them my experience I've made here in Taiwan in this matter they suggest to buy in Taiwan a new notebook with chinese keyboard...then there was a long break of silence at the telephone conversion and finally the german service guy at the phone tell me he will do his best to get the keyboard for me.

Today I got the confirmation that IBM will get a keyboard in Mainland China for me and send it to my home adress in Germany...

Funny story, isn't it?

[edelrc]

I had similar issues with IBM Spain. there is no doubt that IBM standarts are not yet fully and uniformely stablished worldwide.

How I´d got my keyboard in spain was with perseverance and after 5 calls to IBM. If not, I wouldn´t be typing now on my new keyboard.

My recomendation? (no to you Roland, that you already are getting it...) is to ask to that local IBM agent for the local IBM Depot phone or fax number. Behave as even you were a "company" yourself to that agent.. .once you get o the Depot, you should be in good hands.

[JHEM]

Welcome "home" Roland, good to see you back in the Forums!

Regards,

James

[Roland]

Thank you James for the warm welcome!
Good to know a place where I am @ "home"...especially if I have to be out of the western world for so long only to help to build all the famous high-tech gadgets here in asia...and finally have to fight to get a "simple" keyboard...

regards,

[zzyss]

I know this doesn't help at all, but the reason for your troubles is because IBM is run as 3 separate businesses: IBM EMEA, which covers all of Europe, Middle East and Africa; AP Asia Pacific, and of course, the Americas (including Canada).

Therefore, because you were in a different "zone" that is why you had the problem getting the correct parts.

My experience was that I bought my TP in Hong Kong, and the power adapter failed while I was in Australia. Because both of these are part of the AP region, I had no problem getting a replacement.

[Roland]

Hmm, but in this case it was the opposite of what you mention: I do not get the local parts (chinese keyboard in Taiwan but they would sell me a german one...and this in Taiwan).
The chinese Keyboard I got now from IBM Germany. This is what I call funny...