Hardwearing ASUSPRO Ultrabooks boost productivity and safety in a Tangshan Steel Mill
Overview
The common perception of the steel mill is that it’s an industry that has not undergone much change in a hundred years, relying on heavy machinery, and much labour. This is partly true, the essentials of the industry remain unchanged – the high heat, noise, dust and steam generated by heavy machinery, smelting and cooling systems on the production floor, present a very hostile environment and staff working on the production floor have to don special gear to protect themselves from these numerous hazards. Nevertheless, the industry has also transformed itself by incorporating information technology into its daily operations, achieving unprecedented levels of productivity and safety.
A prime example of this is a steel mill located at Tangshan, where the operator replaced most of the computers with the ASUSPRO BU400 ultrabook. Here, ASUS BU400 are used in general administration in the office, and also to monitor the status of the various systems on the production floor. They are also carried by inspection-maintenance teams to the production floor itself, to diagnose and repair systems, ensuring production at optimum level.
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Challenges
According to a point inspector working at the steel mill, “Sometimes, we work in close proximity to the steel production lines, just a few metres from the mill which has temperatures up to 1,000 degrees Celsius. If the computer suddenly fails, this will cause delays in the repair of production equipment.”
Previously, computers used at the plant were not able to stand up to the harsh environment. The cooling fans would suck in too much dust, they were dropped, or steam from the cooling systems condensed on the laptops. ASUSPRO BU400 computers however managed to step up to the role. Said a plant inspector, “The spill-proof keyboard and the way it was built to withstand drops allowed our ASUS notebooks to function reliably. Moreover, its large 14-inch screen allows us to monitor the production process in the office easily, and the lightness and large touchpad makes it easy to operate the laptop on site, while holding it with one hand.”
The Outcome
Like most businesses, steel production can benefit greatly from the introduction of information technologies to bring the industry to present day levels of productivity and safety. Wit ASUSPRO BU400 built with robust features to withstand the rigours of business travel, computers can now be deployed in the steel industry wherever they are needed, even on the production floor.
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The Product
ASUS BU400 is a powerful ultrabook with award-winning design, rigorously tested for long term durability and reliability against such commonplace hazards as drops and spills, surpassing even MIL-STD 810G military standard for ruggedness. To protect vital data, the hard drive is toughened with anti-shock features, while TPM functionality keeps sensitive information from unauthorised access.
The ASUSPRO BU400 weighs just 1.64kg with proprietary True-comfort keyboard and precision touchpad, and features the latest third-generation Intel Core processors and dedicated Nvidia graphics.
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