In addition to our applications, we believe our customer care to be the best available anywhere! AEK can be at your EDP department - on call when you need assistance. Our Customer Care Line is staffed daily from 8 am to 5 PM, central time. If you need assistance, a call will bring immediate response 365 days a year 24 hours a day. To solve a problem we can instantly connect to your system, just as if we were sitting in your office. After hours, our voice-mail system will take emergency calls and page us immediately. Once paged, we can usually respond within 20 minutes.
AEK's commitment is to provide the best computer customer care and support available anywhere, anytime. AEK can assist your primary computer supervisor if you do not wish to hire or train your own system administration staff. Our comprehensive experience as a group dedicated to this industry, our 24 hour availability, our cost-effective fixed-cost services, Application Service Contracts, and reduced cost System Administration Retainers make our customer care and support a bargain compared to full-time dedicated client data processing staff.
Peggy Klein Brodeur is our Customer Care Manager. She and her assistants, will likely be your first contact when calling AEK for most anything. They log your request into our customer care system for handling by the appropriate staff member. In most cases, they personally resolve the issue with you when you first call or within 20 minutes. Each day, one of the regular systems analysts, our systems manager, and a trainer are working in the office to assist the Customer Care Department if needed. Our Systems Technicians are responsible for all issues related to computer hardware and third-party applications. They are in the AEK Customer Care Center ready to help clients and AEK staff with problem determination and other assistance. They also perform system maintenance and administration duties at client request. They help clients who do not have in-house expertise to determine what might be causing a problem and try to identify the best alternatives for resolution. They might recommend field installation and support from other software or hardware vendors. AEK does not do on-site computer hardware or third-party software work.
Regular business hours are Monday through Friday (except holidays) 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., in Central Time.
Calls for assistance and emergency help may be made direct via the AEK Customer Care Line or by e-mail to .
Emergency hours are any time, any day, outside of the regular business hours stated above. The AEK Manager On Call will answer, or you will receive the manager's voice mailbox. After the voice-mail message and tone, please leave ONLY your name, and telephone number. Our goal is to try to respond within 20 minutes.
AEK allows the client to select the most cost-effective approach to the type of work performed. All newly licensed AEK applications include installation in their one-time fee. All newly licensed AEK applications include a one-year service contract, and both new and existing applications may also be bound under service contracts for a single annual fee, or semi-annual or quarterly fee with surcharge.
AEK Application Service Contracts (ASC) cover most client calls for help, support, and procedural assistance. AEK applications from version 3 and above covered by an ASC include semi-annual enhancements and approximately bi-annual upgrades. The ASC eliminates monthly billing for most AEK Applications-related issues. The ASC prevents hourly charges at higher hourly rates. ASC covered clients receive priority preference when calling for services and assistance.
Non-AEK applications and computer hardware assistance may be secured at reduced rates in blocks of 20 hours. This includes all work performed that is not related to AEK software, such as tape drive help restoring files, assistance with locked workstations and printers, and technical help with third-party software such as Thoroughbred. The time worked is billed as earned and reduces the pre-paid retainer. However, the rate charged against the SAR is at the reduced rate guaranteed by the contract.
The SAR is an annual retainer for a minimum of 20 hours. Any dollars remaining in the SAR at the end of the annual period may be used towards the purchase of new AEK applications licenses. When the SAR balance falls below $500, an invoice for another SAR and a new annual coverage period will automatically be issued.