Sullivan (Missouri)

Police Department

Case Study

Sullivan PD utilizes the

xTablet Flex 10 to
write reports, conduct
searches and connect
to the drivers
license and vehicle
registration database.

Located in east central Missouri and 65 miles southwest of St. Louis, the town of
Sullivan has a population of approximately 10,000 citizens and is served and
protected by 16 sworn police Officers along with 7 civilian employees.
The Sullivan PD has always been one of the leaders when it comes to deploying
the latest technology to streamline their operations and help keep their officers
and community safe. Many of the Officers enjoy having computers in the
vehicles as it allows them to check the department database for suspect photos
and residential information, as well as checking on the status of drivers licenses
and vehicle registrations without tying up a Dispatcher. This is a vital time saver
for a small agency where they may only have up to 5 Officers on duty at any
particular time.
They recently set out to find a rugged tablet solution to replace their aging and
expensive in-car laptops.

The Customer Challenge

As a small agency, budget is always an important aspect during the
procurement process no matter whats being purchased. For Sullivan PD,
theyve traditionally used Panasonic Toughbooks for their vehicle-mounted
computers which can cost up to $3,500 for a single laptop. Considered a big
ticket item at that cost, it just wasnt feasable anymore as budgets become
tighter and those Panasonic devices were failing more frequently.
The aging laptops were limiting the productivity of Officers to the point where
theyd revert to collecting information using pen and paper in the field, and
then transfer that data to the department database at the end of their shift.
These time consuming issues were affecting the bottom line, resulting in
Sullivan Police Department seeking out for new laptops or tablets.

The MobileDemand Solution

After testing several laptop and tablet solutions from various providers, Sullivan
PD selected the xTablet Flex 10 rugged tablet from Iowa-based MobileDemand.
The Flex 10 is thin and lightweight yet rugged to withstand the rigors of daily
use. The Flex 10 is mounted inside the squad cars using a non-obtrusive RAM
mount and attached is a full Bluetooth keyboard for fast and efficient data entry.
In addition to the mounting setup, Sullivan utilizes Information Technologies
Inc. (ITI) Records Management System which runs on the full Microsoft Windows
8.1 Professional operating system.
One of the huge benefits according the Sergeant Mike Simmons is the ability to
quickly remove the tablets from the mount, taking them outside of vehicle
when necessary. This allows the Officers to take the device in to a residence
during a call or use the camera for evidence capture and initial data collection.
And the ruggedness of the device could be an added measure of self defense
should the need ever arise.
Not only were we able to improve the productivity and efficiency of our
Officers in the field, but we were able to do it at a fraction of the cost compared
to the Toughbooks we were previously using, said Sullivan PD Sergeant
Simmons. The Flex 10 hardly takes up any room inside the squad cars and has
already proven itself in terms of computing power and reliability.
Sullivan PD has plans in the immediate future to implement mobile ticket
printers, connected to the tablets via USB or Bluetooth.

Sullivan Police Department

Industry: Public Sector
Challenge
Budget for in-car technology
Increase Officer productivity and efficiency
while maintaing a safe work environment

Solution
Deploy xTablet Flex 10 cloud-based tablets in
to squad cars
Utilize RAM Mount, ITI software, built-in
camera, Bluetooth and more for total
solution

Result
Mobility & Efficiency: Officers can take the
tablets with them on any call
Reliability: MobileDemand tablets average
less than a 2% annual failure rate
Innovation: Slim tablet and mount takes up
less space inside squad cars
Cost-savings: No longer have to purchase
$3,500 Toughbooks. xTablet Flex 10 tablets
are sub-$1,000.

The Flex 10 hardly takes up any room

inside the squad cars and has already
proven itself in terms of computing
power and reliability.
1501 Boyson Square Drive, Suite 101, Hiawatha, IA 52233
P 319-363-4121 F 319-363-4122 W www.ruggedtabletpc.com