Assessing The Broad Business Case For Rugged Computing
______________________________________________________________________________________
Copyright © All Rights Reserved for Larstan Business Reports
9
STD-810F test procedures that most closely reflect the challenges targeted users
will face in the field. These tests include drop-, shock-, moisture-, dust- and
vibration-resistance, exposure to extremely low and high temperatures, and other
stressors. Third party certification is critical. But it is also important for buyers to
understand which elements of the MIL-STD-810F were in fact tested.
At a minimum, fully rugged notebooks should be suited for highly demanding
portable and vehicle-based assignments in harsh field and industrial
environments. Buyers should look for metallic cases (such as magnesium alloy)
that have been shown to be 20 times stronger than plastic.
LCD screens should be fully sealed and internally dampened to provide extra
protection against moisture, dust, and shock. Screen brightness should be 500
NITS or higher to support outdoor readability.
Sealed cases and fanless designs, as well as spill-resistant keyboards and
touchpads should also be included to provide protection from the weather, spills,
and splashes that are an inevitable reality in mobile computing environments. At a
minimum, organizations that have this requirement should know how to use the
IEC’s IP standard to determine how much dust and water the product can
withstand and still operate.
Hard and optical disk drives should be mounted in damping materials and
equipped with various other shock insulation features, including flexible
connections between boards and components to protect mission-critical data from
the dangers of shocks, bumps and drops.
Finally, reinforced, integrated broadband wireless communication equipment and
antenna should be built into the machine to protect it against damage while
maximizing the ability to access information from any place at any time.
…Fully Rugged in Commercial Environment
Del Taco, the Lake Forest, California-based restaurant chain, uses fully rugged
computers to improve production line efficiency and cut information technology
maintenance costs. For instance, to improve drive-through customer experience,
Del Taco deployed a wireless, network-enabled rugged thin client mobile
computing system. Employees can now walk out into the weather, into the drive-
through line to take orders. The system streamlined service during busy breakfast
and lunch rush periods.
Del Taco relies on rugged computers to monitor vendor sites and maintain
equipment. They allow Del Taco’s technical support team to immediately evaluate
and remediate problematic restaurant workstation equipment. This has reduced
the need for outside technical support, which helped Del Taco cut $700,000 in
third-party IT service calls in the first year of using rugged PCs.
