Bentley Motors impressed with the powerful and stylish Casio IT-800

Established in 1919, Bentley Motors are renowned worldwide for traditional craftsmanship, ultimate luxury and beautiful cars. The production facility is situated in Crewe in Cheshire.
 
Bentley Motors required an upgrade to the current solution because expansion plans for the business demanded more up-to-date technology. The upgrade had to be reliable and would be used for the recording and configuring of data on the production line. Simon, Quality Manager at Bentley Motors, said: "Essentially, we needed a PDA that would enable engineers to flag up any information on the production line quickly and efficiently." 
 
Requirements
The previous PDA installed had a very low battery life and functioned slowly. "Formerly, we installed a solution which was dated and wasn't rugged enough for the factory floor," explained Simon. "This ease of use, reliability and long battery life were essential requirements for the upgrade."
 
Solution
Bentley Motors needed a reliable solution, which had to be proven to work in the market place. Bentley Motors were bought by the Volkswagen Group in 1998 and the Casio IT-800 was installed at VW. Due to the success of the original roll out by Casio Europe, Bentley Motors contacted Casio UK about the IT-800 being used in the UK. Five IT-800s were trialled in 2009 which later expanded to 30 units. Said Simon: "The staff find the IT-800 easy to use and the triggers on the side are very helpful. Overall, it's a rugged, well-balanced unit and very robust."
 
Many key features and benefits were identified by Bentley Motors following the product trial. 

 
Key Features of the IT-800

• Latest Casio original 3.7" VGA LCD ultra-touch panel.
• Integrated contactless card reader
• IrDA, Bluetooth, GPS, WLAN and WWAN.
• Auto focus 2.0 MP camera with LED flash.
• High speed laser scanner or CMOS imager for accurate barcode scanning.
• Windows Mobile 6.5 and microSD card slot.
• Optional trigger grip.

Simon feels that the IT-800 has been proven to be fast, rugged and reliable: "The IT-800 had a sharp screen and is perfect for indoor and outdoor requirements. It has performed fantastically."
 
Benefits
Bentley Motors has benefitted enormously from the IT-800 in production. Simon remarked: "The IT-800 has improved accuracy and response times for specific uses. It has improved efficiency and has had a measurable impact. We've had good feedback from the employees. The IT-800 has very good battery life durability and incorporates a fantastic 2D scanner. The terminal is durable and also enables the team to scan and identify data much earlier in the production line. The PDA handles impact really well and sits in the hand well with great ergonomics."
 
On-demand data capture

• Real time communication through wireless communication.
• Integrated contactless smart card reader.

Casio Impact Resistant Display

• Text and images on the screen are highly visible in all lighting conditions.
• Casio LCD consumes far less power than conventional designs. 

Superb Scanning Ability

• The IT-800 offers a wide choice of scanning capabilities to meet various customer requirements.

Maximum Toughness

• The IT-800 has been designed to deliver maximum toughness and durability and this is rigorously tested.
• It is dust and water splash-proof to IP54 level.

Human-Centred Design

• Stylish and ergonomically designed.
• Weighing only 340g. 

The future
Simon believes the IT-800 has been very successful on the factory floor and has had a measurable impact on their business. Simon concluded: "In terms of future plans, I would like to stay within Casio and deal with Casio UK directly again. Casio devices are reliable and durable."