Assessing The Broad Business Case For Rugged Computing
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According to estimates by IT analyst firm, Gartner, Inc., annual failure rates for
conventional commercial laptops range from 15 to 23 percent. Since 2003,
notebook PC damage rates have risen 22.5 percent, with an average damage
incident cost of $2,900.
Currently, most major US suppliers of conventional consumer- and commercial-
grade portable computers outsource assembly to a group of China-based
contractors who assemble the machines from a variety of supplied parts on low
margins. As a result, quality control of individual components and assembly is
diminished.
Notebooks that meet the more rigorous standards of ruggedness, in contrast, fail
at an overall rate of less than five percent annually, with some offerings reporting
failure rates in a range less than 2 percent. These are sometimes built by the
same companies whose names are found on the PC itself, helping to explain their
higher quality.
These lower failure rates translate directly into savings in capital outlays and lost
productivity. For instance, in the health care industry, research from Venture
Development Corporation shows the savings that can be achieved with rugged
computing as a result of:
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Fewer repair expenses and less downtime when assisting customers. On
average, the total cost of ownership for rugged computers over three years
is 15 percent lower than that of non-rugged notebooks, translating to
savings of hundreds of dollars per unit.
•
Rugged mobile PCs can have longer warranty periods and longer
replacement cycles versus commercial-grade notebooks.
•
With a four-year replacement cycle for rugged notebooks versus a three
year replacement cycle for commercial-grade notebooks, rugged
notebooks are 11.6 percent less expensive on a per-annum basis.
•
Failure of commercial-grade notebooks results in an average of 30-60
minutes of lost productivity per day for a care giver. With reliable, rugged
mobile computing solutions, healthcare professionals can maximize
productivity and uptime.
No matter the industry, solution or application, it is critical to find the right device,
with the right level of ruggedness, for the tasks at hand.
…Gearing up for Fully Rugged Solutions
Organizations with “fully rugged” requirements should look for computing
platforms that have been independently tested and found to comply with the MIL-
