NCC refuses to comment on details about both the old and new software, citing legal reasons, but Computerworld UK yesterday found previous annual reports that referred to the troubled SAP rollout, and an analyst at Investec bank and asset management group - which used to be the house broker at NCC - revealed Sage as the system that was being upgraded.

"We assume that the project was a necessary one to facilitate higher levels of growth and therefore we do expect a level of growth drag through reverting back to the old systems. On the call, management stated that the old Sage-based products are entirely suitable for the job, but this begs the question of why the expensive migration?" said Investec analyst James Goodman.

He understands that the £6.9 million write-off costs relate to a mix of licence, implementation, contractor pay and internal staff costs.

"Whilst described as non-cash, these are real costs, which have been spent over the preceding three years - we estimate around £2 million in FY12E (estimated full year 2012)," said Goodman.

Furthermore, analyst firm TechMarketView believes the system is Sage's SalesLogix.