By Drew Moore, Executive Director and General Manager, Dell Rugged Mobility Products
 
The Dell Rugged team has been blessed with longstanding customer partnerships in industries that require elite computing performance in harsh working conditions—from frozen tundra to acrid desert. Our military and first responder customers depend on our technology for mission critical actions. We depend on their input in order to improve our design when refreshing our next generation of products to ensure their success. It’s a beautiful symbiotic relationship.
 
However, those established markets don’t keep our teams from exploring new areas where our ruggedized solutions have the potential to help new customers further excel at their jobs. A great example of that is our partnership with JTG Daugherty Racing, the NASCAR team for 2000 Sprint Cup Series Champion Bobby Labonte.
 
The JTG Daugherty team is laser focused on shaving seconds off race times—they don’t have room for technology hiccups due to the hazards that are an everyday part of the NASCAR pit. Our rugged solutions save the JTG Daugherty team two full days when adjusting the No. 47 car by capturing data instantly instead of cumbersome manual measurement. JTG Daugherty Racing’s cofounder, Tad Geshickter, explained to us that one of his team’s biggest challenges day in and day out is the environment in which they work—extremely hot temperatures, dirt, grease, rain and frequent drops.
 
While Dell Rugged Solutions began nearly nine years ago with the military and similar industries in mind, the technology struggles Tad described were exactly the ones our ruggedized notebooks are designed to overcome. The result has been a fantastic partnership. We are able to provide the JTG Daugherty team with secure, manageable and reliable technology solutions that won’t break down when thrown against the rigors of a NASCAR pit, allowing them to focus on building the fastest car possible (i.e. winning). They provide Dell Rugged Solutions with a credible customer advocate that provides exposure with fans and partners in untapped verticals that also have strenuous technology requirements our solutions can overcome.
 
You design your best in breed technology to meet specific needs with specific parties in mind, but don’t let that box you in. Getting creative and reaching out to new industries can garner valuable partners to further your mission of creating best in class technology.
 
Drew is the Executive Director and General Manager for Dell’s Rugged Mobility Product line, with cradle to grave responsibility for the development, marketing, service and customer experience of these products designed to thrive in the harshest of work environments. Learn more at Dell.com/Rugged.
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