St. James Ambulance District, founded in 1975, provides top-level medical care to the central Missouri cities of St. James, Rosati, Little Prairie Lake and others. Over the years, the ambulance district began to grow and it became clear that it needed a more efficient method for its EMTs and paramedics to track and record everyday processes.

Initially, St. James decided to upgrade its “pen and paper” documentation process by deploying Toughbook 18 fully-rugged convertible tablet computers. More recently the ambulance district upgraded to the Toughbook 19 notebooks.

Since deploying the Toughbook devices, St. James has streamlined the EMT and paramedics’ documenting process; EMTs no longer have to transcribe documents from paper to the office computer. The Toughbook computers also helped staff improve the accuracy of patient information in reports.

Although providing a reliable mobile platform for recording and sharing information was of paramount concern to St. James, it soon realized the Toughbook computers had other benefits.

On February 25, 2011, the St. James Ambulance District was called to a motor vehicle accident on Interstate 44. While en route to the scene, ambulance 2217 experienced mechanical problems, forcing the driver to come to a complete stop. Upon exiting the vehicle, the crew members noticed smoke and found the undercarriage of the ambulance on fire. The fire quickly spread to the engine and passenger compartments, where the Toughbook 19 was located.

After the fire was brought under control by the local fire departments, one of the crew members realized that he had three unfinished reports on the laptop. The crew grabbed the laptop, tilted it sideways to let the water drain, and hit the power button to find the computer was fully functional with a few minor exceptions.

“The exterior [of the Toughbook 19] was melted and the case was cracked in several places,” stated Bryan Lambeth, EMS supervisor and paramedic for St. James Ambulance District. “I truly didn’t have high hopes, but I hit the power button and the computer fired right up!”

This wasn’t the only impressive survival story for the St. James Ambulance District. About four years ago, a crew transported a patient from St. James to St. Louis, about a 110 mile trip. After dropping the patient off, the crew placed its Toughbook 18 on the back bumper of the ambulance while cleaning the rig. Once finished, they began their trip home, realizing 40 miles down the road the Toughbook computer was missing. Assuming it had been left in the back of the ambulance, the crew continued its drive through an incessant thunderstorm.

Upon arriving in St. James, the crew stopped to refuel and noticed the device had been on the rear bumper of the ambulance the entire trip. The Toughbook device made it back in one piece, but was completely soaked and covered in road grime. When the team brought the device back to base, they cleaned it up and turned it on to find it working perfectly.

The Toughbook 18 and 19 computers have helped to simplify St. James Ambulance District’s reporting process, allowing crews to report from their emergency vehicles, reducing duplicate entry of data and minimizing incomplete information and data errors. Beyond process improvements, the St. James Ambulance District team has experienced firsthand the advantages of using a device engineered to withstand the rigors of harsh operating environments.

In mission-critical environments, like those faced by the St. James Ambulance District, it’s nice to have the piece-of-mind, and bottom-line value offered by one of the industry’s most reliable mobile computing platforms.

What has your Toughbook device endured? We welcome you to share your Panasonic Toughbook survival stories with us!

In a recent Rolling Stone interview, Girl Talk discusses his unique way of mixing music and creating fun tunes for the crowds – all of this on his Toughbook 74.

Take a look at the below video to experience firsthand Girl Talk’s creative genius powered by a Toughbook PC.

Mark Gumbert, founder and president of Copperhead Environmental Consulting, and his team spend about three weeks every spring researching and tracking bat migrations for both independent and government-commissioned research and need computers that can withstand the terrain, weather and team members’ abuse in critical situations. “We’re pretty brutal on equipment,” Gumbert said.

Gumbert has been tracking bat migrations since 2009, but has been tracking foraging bats since 1993 when calculations were done with a paper map and pencil. “By the time you were done calculating a bat’s location, 10 minutes had passed, and the bat had already moved,” he said. “Now, with computers, the data is almost instant.”

When Gumbert and his team began using laptops they would follow the bats in their vehicles and airplane and track them with GPS software. “The Dell computers we initially used got really hot sitting on our laps and caused static interference with our receiver, which covered up the signal from the bat’s transmitter,” Gumbert said. The devices often fell out of the vehicles resulting in cracked screens and requiring many to be replaced.

Given the reliability issues, Mark and his team were afraid to take these laptops into the field, especially when it was humid outside. The fragility of the devices negated the value of having a mobile solution.  After experiencing numerous failures, they decided to look for laptops that could operate in extreme weather and handle the occasional drop.

The company started looking into Toughbook PCs. The team was looking for something that was rugged yet portable and had electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), which would prevent interference from the avionics and other electronic equipment in the vicinity.

They decided to go with three Panasonic Toughbook 19s. The team liked the 19’s durability and its ability to function in extreme weather. Since the team faced electronic interference issues in the past, the Toughbook 19’s MIL-STD461F certification ensured the Toughbook mobile computers would be electromagnetically compatible with other nearby electronics. They also really liked the backlit keyboards, since much of the team’s work takes place at night.

Piper Roby, biologist and project manager at Copperhead Environment Consulting, works on the ground crew and uses the Toughbook 19 with mapping software to track the bats. “I really like the touch screen in tablet function,” Roby said. “Our team is really rough on equipment and the Toughbook 19s allow us to do our jobs more easily. It makes being in the field a lot more enjoyable since we no longer have to worry about something going wrong with equipment.”

“If a Toughbook device can withstand our brutal team, it can withstand anything,” Gumbert said.

The company initially tested commercial-grade tablet computers, but found they were not able to withstand the day-to-day work environments of an arborist, resulting in failures due to road vibrations, contact with moisture and exposure to extreme temperatures.

Connectivity was another issue faced by AMS.  Originally, the company planned to use external PC modem cards to provide its mobile broadband connection, but found this solution created an increased opportunity for device failure – if dropped or bumped against any surface, an external card could snap off, damaging the motherboard and possibly leaving the field worker with an inoperable tablet.

It was clear to AMS that commercial-grade tablets with external modem cards were not an appropriate solution for its highly mobile workforce. After conducting additional research, the company purchased 80 Panasonic Toughbook 19s with Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband Built-In.  AMS chose Verizon Wireless because of its wide coverage network and its ability to keep employees connected in the field despite the excessive number of miles each arborists covers. The Toughbook 19s were selected for their combination of durability, functionality and performance.

Since rolling out the Toughbook 19s with embedded Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband, AMS has seen a number of positive changes. With the constant connectivity, field workers are able to send and receive greater levels of data, improving the quality and quantity of information available to the company and its customers.  With the embedded modem, the new solution allowed the IT department to eliminate a potential point of failure, “break/fix” support and maximizing mobile worker productivity.  Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband service also allowed IT  remote desktop access to troubleshoot user problems in the field, virtually eliminating downtime and the need for arborists to stop their work and bring their notebook to the office for upgrades or repairs.

With the successful deployment of its Panasonic Toughbook with Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband solution, AMS doesn’t worry about device failures and connectivity, and can now focus its efforts on being the best possible partner to its customers.

You can read the full ArborMetrics Solution case study here, and watch a video case study below.

Lance Trumbull using a Panasonic Toughbook 29 computer at base camp.

While the success of our climb is a testament to the brave individuals who participated, the entire adventure would have been much more difficult and dangerous, and certainly less entertaining, without the rugged computer technologies we brought along.

We received fully-rugged Panasonic Toughbook 29 notebooks; they were absolutely essential for communication throughout our adventure. Their wired and wireless connectivity, even at incredibly high elevations, allowed us to keep in touch with the rest of the planet – the Toughbook computers were our lifeline to the world.  We used a satellite connection to share video, audio, images and emails with our friends and family. And at night we used the Toughbook as our entertainment center for music and videos. We watched several movies, and the television shows Friends and South Park!

But more importantly, the Toughbook 29 rugged computers played an even more significant role by enabling us to be constantly aware of weather forecasts on the mountain. I can speak for the entire Everest Peace Project climbing team when I say nothing feels as vulnerable as climbing to the top of Mt. Everest in freezing temperatures and in horrible storms. And having these weather forecasts not only gave us piece of mind, but also helped make our climb much safer.

While we knew the severity of our reality climbing to the highest point on earth, computing at base camp (17,000 feet) and advance base camp (21,000 feet!) and being able to connect with the rest of the world greatly helped our morale. We were able to literally connect with our friends and family thousands of miles away. Having the ability to turn on a Toughbook 29 and read an email from a loved one or send pictures to a friend was incredibly comforting and encouraging.

A documentary of our climb titled Everest: A Climb for Peace has since been produced and released on DVD. I am excited to announce that in late October, the documentary began its television premiere on PBS stations across the United States!

Over the coming weeks and months, the film will continue to air on PBS stations throughout the United States – including major markets such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston and Atlanta. Please check your local listings to find when the documentary is showing in your area; I am sure you will enjoy watching it.

To learn more about our climb, the film, and upcoming events and expeditions, please go to www.EverestPeaceProject.org.

You can also check out select images from the Everest Peace Project’s 2006 journey, here.

Sincerely,

Lance Trumbull

The Everest Peace Project

The transition to the Toughbook MCAs was easy and resulted in benefits for both the hospital and its patients. Currently, there are 60 Toughbook H1 Health devices in use and the staff has reported excellent battery life, portability and durability. Of course, the most important advantage to implementing this mobile computing solution has been the ability to increase quality of patient care and truly build a team among the clinical staff hospital-wide.

The medical staff of Matsushita Memorial also employs Toughbook H1 Health’s as a tool to help improve communication between nurses and patients. Nurses can easily share information, which might otherwise be difficult to convey, by displaying interactive charts and graphics on the screen of the MCA.

Regarding enhanced patient-to-nurse communication, Fumiyo Sakai, Assistant Director of Matsushita Memorial Hospital said, “Team-oriented medical care is when information and issues pertaining to nurse-care planning are shared among patients and nurses. It is where patients are convinced of the right approach because their wishes and desires have been considered. In this regard, I think the ability of the H1 to allow the patient to directly view information on the screen side-by-side with the nurse is its great merit.”

 A full case study is available, here.

Billed as the world’s lightest 12.1” laptop with a DVD burner, the Toughbook W8 notebook offers many features:

• Weighs 3.0 LBS
• 8-hour batter life
• Handles 30” drops
• Keyboard resists spills
• Takes crushes up to 220 lbs.

Toughbook W8 laptops are specifically built for use by road warriors, mobile professionals and busy executives who travel extensively. In fact, CRN issued an article entitled, “ToughBook 8 Made For Mobile Butterfingers,” that underscores the reliability of this extremely durable and lightweight notebook. One of the best features is the 8-hour battery life so you can avoid searching for an electrical outlet while stuck in the airport or at a cafe. The laptop also comes with a 3-year warranty for added peace of mind.

We’ve made it easy for you. Just go to our Panasonic partner ToughOnline.com to order your Toughbook W8 notebook today while supplies last.

UPDATE:  You can now save even more money – get an additional $200 when you upgrade to Gobi mobile broadband and activate it on either AT&T or Verizon Wireless.

The Toughbook W8 Notebook

A recent study by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology found that the U.S. construction and engineering industry is losing over $15 billion per year as a result of the industry’s continued paper-based business processes, lack of standardization and overall lack of consistent approach to technology deployment among leading organizations.[1]

As construction firms begin to embrace mobile technology to enhance efficiency on the job site, it is critical that they have the right technology in place. Rugged tablet PCs are the ideal mobile device, as they are very portable and have touchscreen capabilities that are favorable for forms-based data entry and work in conjunction with software solutions designed for the market. However, a tablet used on the job site should be MIL-STD-810G certified and IP65 rated in order to survive drops of up to six feet, dust, vibrations and extreme weather. Tablet computers like the Toughbook H1 Field have integrated features, such as a barcode scanner, RFID reader, GPS, camera and mobile broadband that eliminate the need for multiple devices and provide additional resources for data and image capture in the field.

For more information on tablet PCs for the construction market and how to deploy the total solution – hardware and software – for the job site, you can read my article with software partner, Vela Systems, on ForConstructionPros.com here.

Don’t want to take my word for it?

Here’s Girl Talk himself on the durability of his Toughbook computers:

“I used to break at least two laptops a year before I started using Toughbook computers. They are very difficult to break. I carry my Toughbook in my book bag usually. I was standing in the back of an icy pick-up truck after a show and I fell, landed on the ground, directly on my back, basically crushing the laptop with body onto concrete. There was no visible damage at all, and it still runs like a champ.”