In an effort to improve worker efficiency, the utility outfitted each of its water engineers and samplers with a Panasonic Toughbook. The company is currently refreshing its Toughbook deployment of 18s with Toughbook 19s.

These Toughbook 18s and 19s are being used to deliver work schedules to engineers, including customer dialogue details and problem histories. At the same time, geographic information system (GIS) software helps locate water assets above and below ground.

Wireless connectivity via 3G broadband and Wi-Fi allows workers to update the utilities database in real time. For example, if a pipe was to burst, engineers can use the device’s touchscreen to draw a map of the impact zone and send that image back to headquarters.

Given England’s rugged terrain and frequent rain and snow, the Toughbook 19’s combination of durability and reliability make it the ideal tool for the utility’s numerous field workers.

“The Toughbook helps us serve our customers better,” Yorkshire Water IT director Alan Harrison said. “By getting data out into the field, our guys can make decisions quickly and feed critical data back into the system. Everyone sees what’s going on.”

For more information on Yorkshire Water’s Toughbook deployment check out the full case study on the European Toughbook site here.

Additionally, see the Toughbook 19s in action in a video of the deployment below:

EDF Energy is one of the largest energy companies in the UK, generating around one-fifth of the country’s electricity and delivering it to around a quarter of the UK’s population via its electricity distribution networks.

When EDF Energy needed a simple solution to replace an outdated paper system used by its field sales force, it found out that finding the best solution wasn’t straightforward. This new solution was needed as part of an effort to improve information flow and support ambitious ecological targets – the company set a goal of reducing paper use by 30 percent –  as part of the company’s environmental initiatives.

In 2006, with these challenges in mind in, the company embarked on a task to equip all of EDF Energy’s field service agents with a device to capture customer details electronically and completely replace the old paper system. Prior to the introduction of an electronic solution, there was a tremendous amount of hand written paper work that resulted in significant inefficiencies and potential data entry errors.

In 2007 initial trials began with a laptop and two tablet PCs, but a number of issues were discovered, including the need for signature capture capabilities, improved daylight screen visibility, lighter weight and longer battery life. The second stage of the trail involved deploying 100 A4 size tablets to field personnel, but almost immediately the project team began to receive concerned calls regarding the weight of the device.

In 2008, with limited time to trail a device, Panasonic approached EDF with the new Toughbook U1. The size, weight and functionality of the device made it immediately popular with the review team. By December of 2008, EDF had rolled out over 600 Toughbook U1s.

Since the introduction of the Toughbook U1, EDF Energy efficiency and service delivery has reached new heights: errors have decreased, information availability and accuracy has been enhanced, data security improved and paper wastage, unnecessary travel and C02 emissions reduced.

To read the full EDF Energy case study, go to the European Toughbook website.

For the study, two members of the nursing staff were equipped with Toughbook H1 Health MCA devices.  The nurses were able to access the hospital’s information system as well as frequently consulted information.  The Toughbook H1 Health was used in day-to-day care for a group of hospitalized patients and workflow was observed and measured repeatedly over the course of the study.

Prior to the deployment of the Toughbook H1 Health MCAs, observations and measurements were made of the nursing staff conducting the same procedures with a group of patients in the same areas of the hospital. This was done using conventional methods which included taking notes at bedside using pen and paper and later inputting data into the appropriate hospital information system.

After comparing the results, the hospital saw a dramatic improvement in workflow efficiency when using the Toughbook H1 Health.  Perpetration time was eliminated; medication and note taking was cut approximately in half and water (or fluid) balancing time was cut by approximately one third.  In total, the hospital saw a 40 percent reduction in the time its nurses used to conduct their daily work.

The full study is available for download on the Panasonic Computer Products Europe web site at the following link

Crimes are usually solved at the scene, not in the office. But information nevertheless needs to be processed and passed on. The police in the English county of Leicestershire have come up with a way of reducing bureaucracy without adversely affecting data management. The solution the Leicestershire Police deployed was the fully-rugged Toughbook 19 convertible tablet.

Paperwork is a necessary evil, even for the police, but it doesn’t always have to be bothersome and time consuming.  Police in Leicestershire identified a way of making their offices mobile and providing officers access to their usual PC environment when out on the beat. In the past, officers had to return to the station in order to share information and file reports, thus wasting valuable time and increasing overtime hours. Now, mobile access via the touchscreen of the convertible Toughbook 19 notebook puts all the necessary information and more than 70 system applications at officer’s fingertips.

All the facts, wherever they go
There are 200 Toughbook 19s in use throughout Leicestershire, each equipped with 3G and GPRS. Docking stations turn the police officers’ patrol cars into mobile offices, and even make it possible for the Toughbook computers to be mounted vertically. James Pearce, the IT analyst in charge of the system, comments: “The police officers arrive at the crime scene with all the information they need and can add new information relating to the case directly to the system whilst they are there. This is unique in England!” He estimates that approximately a third of a police officer’s time was spent in, or traveling to, the office. In other words, their efficiency could potentially be increased by around 30 percent.

Quick and easy identification in the police line-up
Choosing which model to use wasn’t much of a trial, as the convertible Toughbook 19, which serves as both a notebook and a tablet PC, stands out due to its robustness and resistance to shocks, dirt and water. It can also run for up to nine hours without needing to be recharged and features a daylight viewable display.

A case for the future
The police officers are impressed too, and Inspector Sanjiv Pattani, Mobile Information Project Manager, is already thinking ahead: “The next step could be recording witnesses’ statements then and there at the crime scene.” There are sure to be all sorts of ways in which the flow of information could be improved and police work could be made more efficient and more successful thanks to the Toughbook 19.

This story was originally written and published in 2009 by Panasonic Computer Products Europe

The Dakar Rally started in Buenos Aires for the first time in 2009. Previously, the race had run from Europe to Africa (The Paris-Dakar), but security threats resulted in the move to South America.  The 2009 event was also the first outing for Ellen Lohr – one of Germany’s most accomplished female drivers and a Dakar veteran – as manager of the FleetBoard Mercedes-Benz team. To help manage the complex communications and logistics of a Dakar Rally, the team brought Toughbook 19 fully-rugged convertible tablets and business-rugged Toughbook W7s.

The 2009 rally consisted of 14 legs across Argentina and Chile totaling 9,578 kilometres, and included two Andes crossings. This was by no means the first test of endurance the fully-rugged Toughbook 19 has undergone, but weathering an array of extremities such as knocks, dirt and dust, moisture and extended usage with no recharging opportunities was nevertheless quite a challenge.

Crucial data takes the rough with the smooth
In spite of there being less sand than in past African runnings of the Dakar Rally, both man and machine were put through their paces, going full throttle down demanding dirt tracks and off-road stretches. But that’s just what Panasonic Toughbook computers are made for. Thanks to the Toughbook 19’s magnesium alloy casing and specially cushioned hard drive, the recorded data could be transferred and analyzed each evening back in the bivouac, for the mechanics to fine-tune the vehicle to the next day of racing. The next day, with sand and dust everywhere, it’s the Toughbook 19’s special seal that really comes into its own, concealing all the sockets, plug-in connections and ports behind covers.

The first high-speed office
As a business-rugged model, the Toughbook W7 is usually more suited to office environments. But it’s now in the cockpit of one of the FleetBoard team’s supply trucks. The Toughbook W7 is there because Ellen Lohr is well aware of the importance of mobile communication: “During this sort of media-heavy event, things like PR reports, blogs and other information can serve as an additional impetus when they can be sent and received along the way.” This is done with the aid of transmission options such as UMTS, HSDPA and GPRS in the Toughbook 19 and W7, all of which are as fast as the rally itself. And with such long battery lives, the long stretches of driving with no battery recharge availability need not pose a problem. Even the W7 can keep going for eight hours without being recharged.

It’s the taking part that counts
Two of the team’s three participating vehicles made it to the finishing line and were ranked 76th out of 177 cars and 38th out of 81 trucks – both respectable results that really put a smile on Ellen Lohr’s face: “We’re ever so happy.” Incidentally, Ellen and her team were not the only ones to place their trust in Panasonic Toughbook computers during the 2009 Dakar.

In January 2010, Ellen Lohr and her team were again in South America for the Dakar Rally.  Once again, Toughbook mobile computers were at their side.

This story was originally written and published in 2009 by Panasonic Computer Products Europe

The Galapagos Sea Lion Project is searching for answers to these questions in the unique and remote world of the Galapagos Islands. And the ruggedized convertible Toughbook 19 is involved in the research.

A team from Bielefeld University (Germany) travelled half way around the world to the Galapagos Islands – one of the last remaining substantially unspoiled biotopes in existence – in order to carry out their field research. The focus of their work is the Galapagos sea lion.

Postgraduate student Jana Jeglinski is a member of the team and is responsible for examining the animals’ diving behavior. In an environment that combines both water and blazing sunshine, the obvious choice when it came to hardware was the convertible Toughbook 19. The device is resistant to the dust found in the dry conditions of the camp and to the wet conditions found on the coastline and at sea. Additionally, the display is easy to read, even in bright sunlight.

Data about the sea lions diving habits is collected by small recording devices that are carefully attached to the sea lions’ backs – a proven method which is harmless for the animals. Two weeks later, the animals are caught and the data is downloaded to the Toughbook 19, where it is stored safely even if the hardware is knocked or accidentally dropped during the choppy boat trips to and from shore. A particularly practical feature of the CF-19 is the pivotal touchscreen, which makes it possible to easily turn the device into a tablet PC for simplified data input.

Jana Jeglinski really appreciates the assistance of the robust Toughbook 19, with its battery life of up to nine hours: “It’s incredibly resilient, and is also very compact and light, so it’s a joy to work with. The CF-19 has been covered in sea spray, baked by the equatorial sun and used in an environment in which the air is full of brine. I’ve even once used it to fend off a territorial male sea lion.”

This story was originally written and published in 2009 by Panasonic Computer Products Europe