© 2009 VDC Research Group, Inc. 6
“The ability to disinfect is huge. We have
done-in our keyboards trying to apply
just a little disinfectant to stop the
spread of viruses”
– IT evaluator for a homecare service
provider organization
•Field-based moderate: The hazards of the field based moderate
environment align with field based harsh. Devices need to be designed
to resist vibration, temperature, humidity, and altitude, along with wet and
particulate laden environments. Yet, the degree of protection does not
need to be as robust as conditions are less harsh. Vehicles are typically
driven on smooth paved roads. Mobile workers will often choose not to
work outside during extremely harsh weather conditions. Granted the
solutions are still highly mobile, requiring strong protections against
normal wear and tear, drops, and liquid. Key industries that deploy
solutions to field based moderate environments include field sales, field
service, professional services, trucking, DSD, and mail/courier.
•Road warrior: Currently most road warriors use their devices primarily in
carpeted office areas except for during transit. As a result, commercial-
grade devices are the most commonly adopted platform. Integration of
more durable components such as spill-proof keyboards and some form
of hard drive protection received favorable reception from this community
which is resulting in adoption of more business-rugged or durable mobile
computing solutions.
•Campus: Organizations that work in areas of tiled floors or concrete
often demand more active workloads (namely not desk work). Devices
need to be protected against shock to concrete or tiled floors from arm
level. Depending on the environment, specifications may need to be
specialized to withstand exposure to industry specific hazards. For
instance, healthcare facilities require solutions that can be disinfected to
prevent the spread of germs. Warehousing operations often require
solutions that can withstand cold temperatures for use in freezer
environments. Industries covered in this category include healthcare,
manufacturing, warehousing, and retail.
•Healthcare: In reaction to a lack of a “perfect” platform, hospitals have
mainly adopted commercial-grade devices, stapling them to carts to
prevent falls and enhance the ergonomics. Recently, increasing adoption
of more sophisticated applications, such as e-prescribing and
prescription verification, is demanding that computers be further
integrated into the workflow. Subsequently, demand for truly mobile
platforms is on the rise. To meet this new trend, vendors developed
Mobile Clinical Assistants (MCAs) such as Panasonic’s Toughbook H1,
which is a tablet featuring rugged construction, disinfectable casing, and
a competitive price point. Currently, MCAs have received favorable
reception from the medical community, especially for the ability to
disinfect, and are starting to be used in full scale deployments at
hospitals. Indicators point to the MCA category as a successful new form
factor due to the creation of platforms consisting of the distinct set of
ruggedness and ergonomic features demanded by the healthcare
environment.
