Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

Seattle Fire Department Use of Data911 Mobile Computers

A. BACKGROUND

In 1999 the Seattle Fire Department conducted a competitive evaluation of mobile computers for all fire apparatus. Data911 was selected based on cost, functionality, durability, reference checks, and hands-on testing. Prior to this evaluation process the Department considered using regular laptops – i. e., non-ruggedized devices – in the fire vehicles. Other jurisdictions were consulted about their experience using laptops in fire vehicles. As expected, the non-ruggedized devices had a fairly high failure and mortality rate. One jurisdiction planned on replacing the non-rugged laptops about once every 3 years and expected to spend a significant amount of time on repair of components (screen, hard drive, etc.) The rational for using non-rugged mobile computers was cost: the purchase price of non-rugged devices was 3 to 4 times less than the cost of the ruggedized devices.

The SFD mobile data computers (MDCs) primary use was for dispatching, status messaging, and providing access to pre-incident plans and SOPs. Given the critical nature of these devices in supporting  emergency response and communications Seattle Fire’s concern was trying to support this technology in fire vehicles in 34 stations scattered around the city on a 24-by-7 basis with limited IT staff. It seemed that the ruggedized computers would have a lower total cost ownership. Seattle Fire’s experience appears to have justified the decision to go with rugged mobile computers.

B. RECENT RESEARCH

VDC Research Group, Inc. (www.vdcresearch.com) published a report in 2010 documenting the total cost of ownership of ruggedized mobile computers versus non-ruggedized computers. This report came from a study of numerous public and private sector organizations (including public safety) that considered numerous factors that impact the cost of owning mobile computers - beyond the original purchase price.

Some of the factors included:

Hard Cost

• Hardware: mobile computer and peripherals
• Software: Upfront fees, license fees, development costs
• System Development: Application design, development, integration and staging

Soft Costs

• Training: Initial user training
• Operational: System maintenance, 3rd party technical support, internal technical support, upgrades, application management
• Downtime: Lost labor/wages, lost revenues, hardware replacement

Ruggedized devices were used by most of the organizations in the VDC study to address the challenges of the mobile environment: extreme temperature changes, dust/particles, vibration and physical blows, biochemical contamination, humidity, and water/rain.

Two important conclusions came out of the study:

1. Ruggedized mobile devices had a 53% lower cost of ownership than non-ruggedized devices. The costs take into account the purchase price, warranty/maintenance fees, replacement, parts, lost labor/wages, technical support costs, etc. NOTE: the lost productivity accounted for roughly 52% of the devices’ total cost of ownership.
2. Ruggedized mobile devices had a failure rate that was 63% less than comparable non-ruggedized devices: 6.5% failure rate for ruggedized versus 17.5% for non-ruggedized. The leading source of failure was hard drives, displays, keyboards.

C. SEATTLE FIRE EXPERIENCE

The cost breakdown in the VDC Research study assumed a 4.5 year replacement cycle on ruggedized mobile computers and 3 years for non-rugged mobile computers. Seattle Fire Department’s experience with the Data911 computers is that the replacement cycle is really 8 years for the whole MDC and non-rugged computers only last about two years if installed in fire vehicles.

The TCO assessment, below, is based on 21 months of maintenance work orders, and purchases and upgrades of the Data911 mobile computers over a ten year period. Several assumptions are made in the assessment:

• Lost wages is not really a factor in this assessment. When a mobile computer fails the fire company and 9-1-1 center dispatchers use radio dispatching and radio status messaging until theMDC problem is corrected. No fire apparatus are taken out of service for mobile computer failure and no firefighter down time or over-time was incurred.
• Software costs are not included because the cost is essentially the same for rugged and non-rugged computers.
• Non-rugged devices require 2 times as much IT technical support due to increased failure of components. This factor is based on the metrics established in the VDC study – i. e., the failure rate of non-rugged devices was twice that of rugged devices.

1. LABOR/SUPPORT COSTS

Table 1 is based on an evaluation of 334 service desk calls associated with MDCs and peripherals in Seattle Fire Department vehicles. Of that, 149 were specific to the mobile computer. The number of problems listed in Table 1 are projected annual problem calls (based on the 21 month sample period)

Table 1 – Support Cost

SFD has 100 Data911 computers in service in fire vehicles. With a fully burden labor rate of $120 for technical support the annual cost per MDC is:

($120 labor cost x 135 problems) / 100 computers = $243 per MDC per year

The Department does not have detailed support cost for non-rugged laptops installed in vehicles.

So, for this exercise a factor of 2 was applied to MDC support cost based on the VDC study – i. e., the MDC support cost was doubled to represent the cost of supporting a non-rugged laptop.

2. HARDWARE COST

Table 2 shows the cost of the Data911 MDC and the cost of a non-rugged laptop over an 8 year period.

The MDC initial Year 1 cost includes 3 years warranty on all parts. After that there is a $276/year warranty extension costs. Also, in Year 5 there is a CPU upgrade cost (along with new video cable). The CPU upgrade is not required but based on SFD’s experience the life of the Data911 MDC can be extended significantly buy just upgrading the CPU versus buying a whole new device. The non-rugged device cost assumes a 3 year warranty but our experience with laptops permanently installed in vehicles in the field is that the practical useful life is about 2 years. That means purchasing a replacement laptop every 24 to 30 months.

Table 2 – Hard Cost

¹ These costs are from the VDC Research study completed in 2010: laptop ($1642), bracket ($390) and enhanced warranty and damage insurance ($330).

² Cost of a Data911 M6 II with 4GB RAM, 80GB HD, rugged back-lit keyboard, touch screen video display and cable, display mount and 3 year comprehensive warranty.

3. TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP

As indicated in Table 3 the total cost of ownership for the Data911 MDC is actually less than the non-rugged laptop.

Table 3 – Annual Cost

Of course, other agencies will have different experiences and outcomes when they evaluate the real useful life of devices and measure the level effort to support each device. The wear-and-tear on devices will be different and other hard/soft costs will vary between agencies. Issues to consider are:

1. Will the MDCs be permanently installed in fire vehicles (in docking stations or fixed mount)? Devices in vehicles all of the time will experience much more damage than devices that are hand carried.
2. How will contamination be addressed? In the fire service – particularly for those providing EMS – computers in the field need to withstand a decontamination process. It is highly unlikely that non-rugged or even semi-rugged devices can survive very long if the keyboards, touch screens and other exposed areas need to be decontaminated on a regular basis.
3. What strategy will be used to secure the devices? Tampering and theft are issues that need be addressed in considering fixed mount devices (like Data911) or removable devices like laptops and tablets.
4. What remote management software is being used to support the MDCs? There are several products on the market that can reduce IT support costs whether ruggedized on non-rugged computers are deployed.

If any agency would like more information on Seattle Fire Department’s experience with Data911 and managing mobile computers in fire apparatus please contact Leonard Roberts, IT Director, Seattle Fire Department ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 206-386-1476)

By Leonard Roberts, IT Director, Seattle Fire Department

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