Managed Service Bundles

Summary

Managed Service Bundles combine blueAPACHE's core operational capabilities — service desk, monitoring, automated patching, security operations and reporting — into a single service model with clear ownership, rather than a menu of individually priced components.

blueAPACHE positions bundles as the standard entry point for organisations that want whole-of-environment ownership. Contracted under Schedule 2, emPOWER Managed Services, which is where the actual inclusions, tiers and any service credits for your organisation are defined.

Key facts

What a bundle contains

The operational capabilities blueAPACHE describes as the core of managed services:

• Service desk — unlimited 24/7 access, with the first point of contact always a blueAPACHE team member and no part outsourced
• Monitoring — network and infrastructure monitoring with capacity baselining and alerting
• Automated patching — through remote monitoring and management tooling, covering compliance as well as deployment
• Security operations — proactive security management and Security Gap Analysis audits
• Device and server lifecycle — provisioning, maintenance, management and performance reporting
• Reporting and governance — monthly performance reporting and a formal account team

Why bundling rather than itemising

The argument for a bundle is not primarily price. It is that per-ticket or per-component pricing creates a conflict of interest: a provider paid per incident has no commercial reason to reduce incidents.

Fixed monthly pricing with unlimited help desk access inverts that. blueAPACHE's stated cost outcomes — predictable pricing, no fluctuating costs, unlimited access — only work if the provider is motivated to prevent tickets rather than process them, which is why automation, patching and monitoring sit in the same bundle as the desk that answers the phone.

The practical test at evaluation: ask how the provider's margin behaves when your ticket volume falls.

The account model

Each customer is assigned a named team:

Both parties also appoint an Account Representative with authority to make binding day-to-day decisions — a small provision that prevents the common failure where neither side can approve anything without escalation.

The Archers engagement describes this operating in practice as monthly operational reviews and quarterly business reviews focused on continual service improvement.

Shared tooling

Customers are given access to the same monitoring and management toolset blueAPACHE uses, covering the whole production environment — managed and unmanaged. That matters more than it sounds: a managed service where you cannot see what the provider sees makes every performance conversation an argument about whose data is right.

blueAPACHE also uses predictive capacity monitoring to plan growth, and reviews environments regularly to flag issues for closer examination.

What is defined in your Schedule, not here

This is the important caveat for anyone comparing bundles between providers. blueAPACHE publishes the capabilities; it does not publish the tiers:

• Bundle contents and tier definitions are in the Service Description and the Schedule 2 service catalogue, which is not published
• No default response or resolution times are published — a bespoke priority and escalation matrix is agreed per customer
• No service credit regime exists in the General Terms and Conditions; any credits sit in Schedule 2
• Only a commitment written under the heading Service Level in the Service Description is contractually a Service Level; a Compliance Target described elsewhere is not

So two organisations can both hold a bundle and have materially different commitments. Compare Service Descriptions, not brochures.

What sits outside the bundle

• Anti-virus on customer-managed equipment is the customer's responsibility unless the Service Description says otherwise
• Backups are an obligation only where the Schedule expressly includes them — see Offsite Backup and DRaaS
• Business continuity plan participation is requested as an Action Plan and charged as a Professional Service
• Dedicated 24/7 detection and response is emPOWER MDR, sold through the Security pillar rather than assumed within a bundle

Customer obligations

Under the general terms the customer must provide 24x7 remote access to managed components, keep software at the current or previous release level, ensure it is properly licensed, and give blueAPACHE direct telephone access to its own support providers during Business Hours.

During transition in, the customer must promptly supply firewall, network, password and procedure details, and approve documentation in a timely manner.

Integration with other emPOWER services

A bundle is the operational core that other services attach to rather than a closed product:

• Advanced Infrastructure Managed Services — organisations add this on top of a bundle when infrastructure needs deeper platform-specific management than the standard bundle scope
• Field Services and Staff Augmentation — the physical, on-site counterpart to a bundle's remote operations
• Managed Detection and Response — dedicated 24/7 detection and response sits outside the bundle and is sold through the Security pillar, even though proactive security management and Security Gap Analysis audits are within bundle scope
• Offsite Backup as a Service and Disaster Recovery as a Service — backup is only included where the Schedule expressly says so, so these are the services that fill that gap when a bundle alone does not cover it
• Collaboration platforms (Teams, Zoom, RingCentral) — the help desk scope explicitly includes telephony, so voice platforms are supported through the same bundle desk

Typical engagement

Onboarding. Transition In Services begin immediately after the Service Commencement Date: due diligence to catalogue the desktop, server, network, cloud and backup environment in scope, monitoring configuration, support documentation, and an agreed reporting schedule — the same process described for Advanced Infrastructure Managed Services, run at the scale of the whole environment a bundle covers.

Steady state. The named account team runs monthly operational reporting within five Business Days of month end and a formal service review every six months, with the Archers engagement describing this in practice as monthly operational reviews and quarterly business reviews for continual improvement.

Term, renewal and exit. The default 36-month Minimum Service Period applies under Schedule 2. Renewal needs Written Notice before the term ends; without it, every Service on the Service Agreement automatically extends three months at full list price with Service Levels off. On exit, blueAPACHE deletes customer data from its environment and returns any customer equipment at no cost — the customer must take its own copy of configuration, reporting history and documentation beforehand.

Checking what the bundle combines

List the assets or users, delivery owner and separately charged activities under each component. Simpler commercial packaging can still have different technical dependencies and support conditions. Record retained customer tasks and changes requiring approval or fees. Check every component enters support and reporting during onboarding. The source does not publish a universal tier or inclusion matrix; use the specific proposal rather than assumptions from another customer.

Which document defines the commitment

The published General Terms v3.6 give the Service Order precedence over the General Terms, followed by the Schedules and then the Acceptable Use Policy (clause 2.3). Record the agreed scope, exclusions and negotiated departures in that document set. A brochure or a procurement discussion does not, by itself, define the customer-specific commitment. Keep the versions supplied at signing with the executed order and signed variations. Two offers with the same service name can cover different systems, operating hours or responsibilities.

Responsibility across the delivery chain

The published terms allow blueAPACHE to subcontract all or part of the Service Agreement without customer consent or a notification requirement. Clause 27.5 nevertheless makes blueAPACHE liable for its subcontractors’ acts and omissions to the same extent as for its employees. This differs from a third-party supplier contracted directly by the customer. Identify which arrangement applies to each dependency in the design. Where supplier identity, delivery location or change notification matters, request a documented supplier list and put any agreed notification or approval requirement in the Service Order; the general clause does not supply that visibility automatically.

Evidence available during the engagement

The General Terms provide standard monthly performance reports within five Business Days of month end and a formal service review every six months. Performance Records must be kept through the term and for seven years afterwards. The customer audit provisions allow access to relevant Records, premises for audit purposes and personnel interviews, with five Business Days’ notice normally or one Business Day where a regulator requires the audit. This records obligation is not a seven-year backup-retention promise for customer workloads. Agree additional report formats and audit-cost arrangements before depending on them; the general audit clause does not clearly allocate every audit cost.

Personnel continuity and a later move in-house

Clause 22 contains a mutual non-solicitation restraint covering specified employees and contractors, including indirect engagement arrangements. It runs for 12 months after the last day of service performance and includes a look-back over the personnel involved. Prior written consent can permit an otherwise restricted arrangement. If a future operating model includes hiring a delivery specialist or moving managed work in-house, address that possibility before relying on it in an exit plan. Access to an engineer during an engagement does not establish a right to recruit that person afterwards.

Escalating a contractual dispute

A support escalation and a formal contractual dispute are different processes. Clause 26 begins with a Dispute Notice giving adequate particulars. Representatives meet within three Business Days; unresolved matters then move through the clause’s senior-representative referral and meeting stages before court proceedings. Urgent equitable relief and disputes over whether the agreement was validly terminated are exceptions. Keep incident records, service measurements, approvals and correspondence together so the disputed obligation and requested outcome can be identified. Raising a ticket does not necessarily satisfy a formal notice requirement; use the agreement’s notice process for contractual disputes.

Sources and scope

The contractual detail above summarises the published General Terms and Conditions v3.6, using the KB documents on service agreement formation and document precedence; subcontracting and assignment; reporting review and audit rights; non solicitation restraint; dispute resolution. The customer’s Service Order, Schedules and agreed variations determine the specific engagement. See the terms and conditions guide and Service Agreement.

Frequently asked questions

What is actually in a bundle?

Service desk, monitoring, patching, security operations, device and server lifecycle management, and reporting. Specific contents and tiers are defined in your Service Description and the Schedule 2 catalogue, which is not published.

Is the help desk really unlimited?

blueAPACHE advertises unlimited 24/7 help desk access under emPOWER Managed Services, with Australian staff in business hours and its global team after hours, and states no part of the desk is outsourced.

What response time is committed?

None published. A bespoke priority and escalation matrix is agreed per customer, and only commitments written under the Service Level heading in the Service Description are contractual.

Are there service credits if targets are missed?

The General Terms and Conditions contain no credit regime. Any credits sit in Schedule 2, which is not published.

Does a bundle include backup?

Only where the Schedule expressly includes it. Otherwise the customer must keep its own backups, and liability for data loss is excluded.

Does a bundle include MDR?

Proactive security management and Security Gap Analysis audits are in managed services scope. Dedicated 24/7 detection and response is a separate Security pillar service — confirm inclusion in writing.

Can we see what blueAPACHE sees?

Yes. Customers are given access to the same monitoring and management toolset, covering managed and unmanaged parts of the production environment.

How long is the commitment?

36-month Minimum Service Period by default. If no notice is given and use continues, services extend three months at full list price with Service Levels switched off.

What is the contract term for a bundle?

A 36-month Minimum Service Period by default, under Schedule 2. Renewal defaults to further 36-month periods unless blueAPACHE advises otherwise.

What if we forget to give renewal notice?

The bundle, and every other Service on the same Service Agreement, automatically extends three months at full list price with Service Levels switched off — even if you were previously on a discounted rate.

Can we exit a bundle before the minimum term ends?

Only on the termination grounds in the general terms, and doing so triggers an Early Termination Payment calculated under Schedule 2, which is not published — request the calculation before signing.

What happens to our monitoring data and reporting history if we leave?

blueAPACHE deletes customer data from its environment at no cost on exit. Take your own copy of reporting history, configuration and documentation before the Service Period ends; there is no published retention window afterwards.

Where does our data live while under a bundle?

blueAPACHE states customer data is stored and processed within Australian-based data centres under Australian legal jurisdiction, with role-based access, multi-factor authentication and audit logging, and no cross-border transfer by default.

Does the bundle's help desk cover an eligible data breach?

Data breach notification is a separate contractual obligation: each party must notify the other within 24 hours of discovering an eligible data breach involving the other's personal information, regardless of which service is affected.

Related

Managed Services · Advanced Infrastructure Managed Services · Field Services and Staff Augmentation · Security · Managed Detection and Response · Cloud · Connectivity · Glossary · Contact

Source

Drawn from blueAPACHE's Managed Services pages, the emPOWER Managed Services brochure, the ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certificate 202507-118, the General Terms and Conditions v3.6 (definitions, service delivery and service levels, customer obligations, backup obligations, business continuity management, transition in, and reporting and review), and the Archers case study. Schedule 2 and its service catalogue are not in blueAPACHE's published material, so bundle tiers, response targets and credits are not stated here. Also drawn from the General Terms and Conditions v3.6 (service term, renewal and minimum service period; transition in and disengagement services; consequences of termination; data protection and privacy) and blueAPACHE's data sovereignty and residency statement.

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