JTG Daugherty Racing, the NASCAR team for 2000 Sprint Cup champion Bobby Labonte, has selected Dell Rugged laptops to help manage the testing and tuning of its No. 47 Toyota Camry race car in harsh race track conditions and garage environments, Dell
announced today.

JTG Daugherty is deploying Dell’s Rugged Laptop solutions, consisting of the Dell Rugged XFR and Dell Rugged ATG laptops and the Dell Latitude 10 tablet to manage race operations both on and off the track. With Dell Rugged products integrated into the NASCAR team’s environment at the shop, in the garage, and at the track, JTG Daugherty Racing now has the ability to quickly collect performance statistics, analyze that data and implement changes based on those findings much faster than before.

“We pride ourselves in leveraging the best in technology to make every second count,” said Matt Corey, IT Administrator, JTG Daugherty Racing. “Dell worked with us to recommend a solution that would further speed up our simulation and adjustment process. With these products, we will not only benefit from the quality of Dell’s trusted rugged laptop line and the speed that comes from having a Dell Latitude 10 tablet in the hands of each of our key players, but we will also be able to protect our investment with systems that can withstand our dusty, greasy, power-tool heavy jobs. The other vendors we considered, like HP, just couldn’t match this level of quality, which is an example of why we continue to choose Dell.”

"We expose our Dell computers to so much dust, dirt and every imaginable particle at the track you can think of, and there's never a problem with any of the ports or keyboard functionality,” said Joey Cohen, No. 47 Toyota Camry race engineer. “There may be instances where the rugged systems are dropped or banged, but we never have to worry about being out of a computer for a week. That's taken out of the equation and gives you peace of mind."

JTG Daugherty Racing is now better equipped to make real-time performance decisions, while amplifying a level of collaboration within the organization. Previously, the team relied on paper and pencil to record car statistics and data, causing a “gap in timely performance changes and communication,” Corey adds. Providing Dell Latitude 10 tablets with Griffin Survivor cases to the driver, car chief, crew chief and other key decision-makers, “we have connectivity everywhere – as the car chief makes a decision about a change to the car, for example, he now notes this on his Latitude 10 and the information is instantly communicated to everyone across the organization. All decisions from the car chief trickle down to updates to the racecar and with everyone synced together with tablets and other Dell technology, that information flow is now much faster, more reliable and more efficient.”

Based on early results, the Dell Rugged implementation has allowed the JTG Daugherty Racing team to save two full days in the car adjustment process. Prior to incorporating the rugged solutions, the team had to spend Friday through Sunday, each race week, making adjustments to the race car based on simulations and data captured manually. With the added efficiencies mentioned above, and by streamlining their processes in the new connected environment, the JTG Daugherty Racing shop now has the information they need instantly and can complete adjustments by the end of the day on Friday. This frees up critical team resources between races and allows for more time to focus on iterative testing and analysis every week; integral steps to producing a winning car and driver in an extremely competitive
environment.

From the driver to the garage and the pit crew to the data center, JTG Daugherty Racing leverages a complete suite of Dell technology and solutions, including Dell PowerEdge servers, Dell EqualLogic storage, Dell Rugged XFR and ATG notebooks and tablets, Dell Precision workstations and Dell ProSupport services.

In a sport where fractions of a second separate the pole position from last place, data quickly becomes a competitive advantage. JTG Daugherty relies on Dell PowerEdge servers and Dell EqualLogic storage arrays to keep their information safe, secure and accessible every weekend. Countless environmental and performance statistics are measured during every test lap and qualifying race. This data is captured, collated, and shared in real-time with every member of the JTG Daugherty team.

"There are many benefits to working with Dell," said Brian Burns, No. 47 Toyota Camry crew chief. "In addition to the reliability benefits we’ve seen with Dell’s rugged systems, Dell has also helped us to speed up our processing power when we run race simulations. This allows us to get a lot more done in the shop in a shorter period of time. Dell Precision workstations provide robust computing horsepower to design and fabricate custom parts in our in-house CAD/CAM operation. Furthermore, Dell ProSupport has helped us to enhance our networking and connectivity environment which allows us to communicate and collaborate as a group more effectively."

"If there is ever any issue at the racetrack, troubleshooting is really easy thanks to the performance capabilities of Dell Rugged notebooks,” said Cohen. “When we are evaluating high resolution photos or large data sets on the Dell Rugged systems, the added computing horsepower helps us better dial into specific aspects of the car we need to focus on for improvements or adjustments.”

“We are thrilled that JTG Daugherty Racing has chosen Dell as a partner to succeed in the harshest conditions in a sport where every millisecond counts, failure is not an option and reliability is paramount,” said Neil Hand, vice president, Dell end user computing products. “The team’s choice to add Dell rugged laptop technology to their winning formula and existing Dell infrastructure serves as a prime example of our ability to meet customers’ IT needs be it in the office or classroom—or from the shop to the track to the cockpit.”

Dell prides itself in building lasting relationships with all customers. Through collaboration with JTG Daugherty Racing and its partner, NASCAR veteran, Integrity Sports Marketing, Dell demonstrates its commitment to building end-to-end solutions with proven results at the track, in the garage or anywhere in-between.