Company name: Durabook
Headquarters: Fremont, Calif.
Signature product: Durabook U11 fully-rugged tablet and S14I semi-rugged laptop
Website: https://www.durabook.com/us/
1. Where did your company name originate from?
The Durabook name comes from the fact that our computers are rugged and meant to be durable in the harshest environments. Our laptops and tablets are built to withstand a variety of challenges and be a reliable partner for our customers in today’s digital age.
2. What was the inspiration behind starting your company?
Since its founding in 1984, Twinhead International Corporation (the mother company), now a public listed Taiwan company, has been a significant supplier of computing devices for more than 35 years, committed to developing products and solutions for the computer industry.
In 2000, the company manufactured its first military-grade rugged laptop, followed by introducing the Durabook brand in 2002. The Durabook line quickly expanded to meet customers’ demands in many markets requiring rugged mobile solutions.
Today, Durabook is the core brand by Twinhead International Corporation, which has a loyal customer base around the globe, including most branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, public safety agencies, numerous field service organizations, as well as companies that specialize in oil and gas, logistics, healthcare, utilities and automotive industries.
3. What is your signature product and how does it work?
The Durabook U11 fully-rugged tablet and S14I semi-rugged laptop are our signature products. Fanless and quick-release SSD design makes U11 perfect for the government community so they don’t have to worry about information leaks. Choosing between mutually exclusive I/O interfaces and devices is a thing of the past. The U11 rugged tablet has it all. It packs an unprecedented number of productivity features within its highly compact and rugged exterior, including a detachable keyboard and generous space for further expansion.
S14I is great for law enforcement. It’s light yet still rugged enough to handle a challenging environment. It’s engineered to combine military-grade durability, field-worker functionality and computing performance, making it suitable for use in locations where rain or dust may be a regular occurrence. For professionals in today’s challenging and versatile working environments, the S14I rugged laptop is genuinely in a class of its own. S14I is an intelligent device knowing how to communicate in every way, and the S14I says it all: it’s compatible with a full range of interfaces and the media bay offers all the customized expansion you may need.
4. Why do you believe your products are essential to the police community?
Durabook products are essential to all non-consumer-based verticals; whether in the trade, in the field, in the vehicle (such as forklifts, cars, boats or in explosive environments-C1D2), i.e., state and local, public safety, utility, manufacturing, production, field technician, telecom, etc. The list is paramount – considering the environments for rough conditions – let Durabook take the liability of harsh conditions with our three-year complimentary warranty; semi-rugged – manufacture limited; fully-rugged – ADP (Accidental Warranty).
5. What has been the biggest challenge your company has faced?
The biggest challenge we have faced is overcoming the current global supply chain issue, which is no longer an issue. We lead the industry with a shorter lead time by forecasting weekly, regular shipments to our customers. We can typically ship the units in 3-5 business days on in-stock items and 4-6 weeks for integrated custom builds.
6. What makes your company unique?
Durabook is unique. We are solely focused on rugged mobile hardware solutions – rugged laptops and tablets. We have all resources focusing on laptops and tablets, best to fulfill the needs of those procuring these devices. Durabook also owns its own manufacturing facilities to fabricate its rugged computers, allowing it to be a more responsive partner for is resellers and customers.
What makes us unique can be combined as follows:
- 35+ years experience in the manufacturing of personal computers and peripherals.
- 20+ years in developing ruggedized solutions for heavy-use environments.
- Strong in-house R&D team and system design capabilities and dedication to drive innovation.
- Having completed development and production facilities.
- Customization capability to meet in-field performance.
- Purpose-built solutions for unique requirements.
7. What do your customers like best about you and your products?
Our clients are constantly excited to know that they are reaching an actual person. Our customer service response time is immediate and quick. Customers also say that we are easy to work with. They love that our quotes are line itemized out like a menu and they are not for unnecessary items.
8. What is the most rewarding part of serving the first responder community?
Most importantly, providing an affordable and accurately specified device to serve a purpose for those in service to the community and the government; allowing their services to be done with ease to save lives are the most rewarding parts. Also, Durabook’s rugged computers are more affordable and we can be sensitive to the budget constraints faced by many agencies. This allows more agencies to implement mobile computing technology reliably.
9. Is there any fun fact or trivia that you’d like to share about your company?
Here is the company video where you can find Durabook members:
You can see we are a company of multi-cultures across the world.
10. What’s next for your company? Any upcoming new projects or initiatives?
With Windows 11 coming up, we are outfitted with 10th and 11th gen Intel, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth v5.2. And coming in the next 18 months, there are discussions about more upgrades, application add-ons and more We are also continuously working with tier one partners, such as Intel, Microsoft, Nvidia and Sierra Wireless, to offer the latest state-of-the-art technology.