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Computers are now everywhere, not just in our offices and homes but nearly every working environment now seems to be controlled by a PC. Of course their processing power often means tasks that took hours or days before are done almost instantly.

Even in heavy industry, computers, if they haven’t replaced human workers, now run side-by-side with them. Yet computers can be sensitive pieces of equipment and often conditions in some industry locations can cause tremendous problems with IT.

It would be illegal and unethical to make a human employee operate in hostile conditions without adequate protection or safety equipment but it is very rare that people make the same consideration for computers.

However, each year, companies have an average of 501 hours of computer downtime costing millions in annual productivity and revenue. According to a recent study, computer downtime is responsible for the loss of 3.6% of annual revenue compared to 6 % caused by employee sickness and absence.

Yet often, the conditions that computers have to work in often cause many of the problems associated with computer downtime, from dust, fluid spills, excessive temperatures (either hot or cold) or bangs and knocks from forklifts or other industrial machinery.

Computers of course are very sensitive piece of equipment and designed to run in offices or homes, certainly not industrial locations. Yet millions of PCs do just that, from controlling machinery like furnaces or presses to processing data on production lines.

Of course specialist PCs are available that can endure extremes of hot and cold and withstand being bombarded by dust or fluids. However, these are often highly expensive machines and as computers develop at an exponential rate, will need replacing quite regularly.

This is quite possibly the reason many industrial computer users opt to use cheap PCs and replace them regularly rather than opt for expensive and quickly obsolete specialist industrial computers.

However, there are inexpensive solutions to protecting PCs in hostile environments in the shape of industrial PC enclosures. All computers have an enclosure of sorts, normally just a thin piece of aluminium, which protects the circuitry. However, for industrial applications these are not adequate enough and fail to protect the PC from spills, dust or knocks by heavy machinery (such as fork lifts)

An industrial PC enclosure is made from all sorts of materials including food-grade stainless steel and can house a conventional PC protecting it from dust and fluids, heat and cold (often industrial enclosures have air conditioners or heaters installed to control temperature) and can withstand dramatic impacts (some even claim to be able to withstand a bomb blast).

These industrial computer enclosures allow a conventional PC to be repaired or replaced whilst still keeping the same enclosure, allowing operators the opportunity to keep abreast of the latest upgrades. Many industrial computer enclosures can also operate safely even in explosive atmospheres as the circuitry is housed inside, preventing any dangerous sparking. They can also be completely doused in water making them perfect accessories for food manufacturing or areas that are frequently hosed down.

We can’t get away from them – computers are everywhere, from the washing machine to the car it seems everything is now run by a computer and with the exponential rate they are advancing there is probably more computing power in the average mobile phone than NASA used to put a man on the moon.

And that has always been a problem for industry, as unlike other areas that computers have to function in, such as the home or office, computers in industry have to be manufactured to a robust standard and have to deal with all sorts of hostile environments from dust filled warehouses and baking hot furnaces to soaking wet production lines and deep freeze lockers.

Most industry computers are specially made, designed specifically for whatever environment they are to be used in, whether by being intrinsically sealed for dusty or hazardous atmospheres or being air-conditioned or heated to control extreme temperatures.

Whilst these industrial computers can function perfectly well they are highly expensive and replacing them can cost, not just in replacing the PC but also in downtime during the re-installation.

And that is why industry has always struggled to keep up with the ever increasing advances in technology – in fact many industrial computers have been in use for a decade and contain very old operating systems and couldn’t cope with modern ones.

Whilst this may make many industrial PCs quite stable, running ten-year-old technology does mean many manufacturing processes are not running as efficiently or using the latest software developments as they should be.

Of course, the time eventually comes when a complete upgrade can no longer be put off and the industrial machines are ripped out and replaced costing a fortune in replacement units and production downtime.

This has always been a catch-22 for industry, weighing up the cost of upgrading compared with the possible improvements to production an upgrade will bring but there is an alternative.

For several years industrial computer enclosures have been designed and manufactured that can house a conventional PC yet still provide the robustness of that of a conventional industrial machine.

These enclosures are made from all types of material including food-grade stainless steel and can be used in all hazardous and hostile environments from dust and explosive atmospheres to wet rooms, furnaces and freezers.

As well as being far less expensive than buying a bespoke industrial computer these enclosures have allowed industry to use conventional low cost PCs in environments that they could normally not function in. Furthermore it is now possible to replace and upgrade machines in a matter of minutes whilst still using the same enclosure and reducing production downtime.

Fire and explosions are one of the leading causes of accidental death. Each year 4,000 people a year are killed in the US alone and a further 25,000 are left injured and often maimed or scarred for life.

Whilst fires and explosions have a multitude of causes, three things are always required: fuel, oxygen and a source of ignition. Fires start when a fuel (from paper in a litter bin to petrol in a fuel tank) is ignited by a spark and the following explosion/inferno is kept alive by the oxygen in the atmosphere.

Of course there is little we can do about the oxygen in the atmosphere but we can reduce the amount of combustibles lying around, making sure areas are swept clean of paper or litter, but what about sources of ignition?

Many fires are caused by faulty electrical equipment a spark or short from a circuit board can arc setting alight any combustible material it comes into contact with. We can of course make sure all electrical equipment is off before we leave the work place, but how practical is this? What about that old IBM workhorse that is left on overnight or the servers left humming in the back room?

A computer monitor left on overnight at a newspaper office in Virginia, as it had been for many years, was, although not in a particular hazardous area, responsible for completely gutting the offices of the Carolina Coast and Virginian-Pilot newspapers as the amount of newspaper lying around provided enough fuel to destroy over a decades’ worth of records.

Computers that work in particular hazardous environments, where there is a risk of explosion or fire, such as chemical factory, have to be sealed, ensuring any fault in the electrical equipment does not spark. However these systems are expensive, particularly when the IT has to be upgraded and the whole unit has to be discarded.

This is of course an impractical solution for those who work in environments not deemed a potential risk and many companies opt to save their money. However, these same companies spend thousands on anti-virus, spyware and firewall systems to keep their data safe from malicious hackers. However, if your entire computer (an perhaps office or factory) goes up in smoke, how safe is your data then?

There is a solution, for computers and other electrical equipment (including monitors, printers), in the shape of specialist enclosures. These can be made from a variety of materials from food-grade stainless steel to cheaper plastic varieties. These enclosures can also protect equipment from knocks and bangs and some are even bomb-proof!

If you have a machine left on overnight or perhaps out in the warehouse amongst the dust and dirt – perhaps an enclosure could save you the time and trouble of not only replacing your data and computer but perhaps the entire building!

Not everybody is fortunate to work in an air-conditioned office, many of us have to endure warehouses and factory floors which can be dusty and grimy; often baking in the summer and freezing during the winter and full of potential hazards.

Of course our employers are at liberty to keep us protected. Overalls are provided to keep our clothes clean, jackets to keep us warm while hard hats and toe protection is now a legal requirement in many workplaces.

Obviously employees are a company’s greatest asset and only a fool or bad businessman would neglect the welfare of their staff. Yet with many more tasks and processes being automated, more and more computers are being utilized in these sorts of environments.

Of course IT and technological systems can be a great asset, reducing production times and increasing productivity, but computer hardware can also be a substantial investment – especially if they have to keep being repaired or replaced due to the nature of the environment they are situated

Computers are fragile pieces of technology, designed to work at optimum conditions and temperatures; the opposite of the conditions in most warehouse, factories and production plants.

Dust can clog the keyboard and mouse making them unusable, whilst also blocking filters; clogging up the PC and causing it to overheat and often short circuit. Whilst the cold can freeze circuits destroying processors and data stored on drives while the heat can be even worse as it can actually melt the processors and sensitive hard drive.

Even if your warehouse has adequate heating and air-conditioning, knocks and bangs from fork lifts and pallet trucks could easily wreck a machine whilst spilt fluids can cause instant short circuits and even fires!

Fortunately, there are plenty of solutions available. Specialist industrial PCs are available but can be very expensive, particularly if you regularly upgrade your IT and have to replace them but cheaper alternatives in the form of dust covers and water or dustproof keyboards.

However, by far the best way of ensuring trouble free computing even in extreme conditions such as freezers and even ovens, are to use specially designed industrial pc enclosures. These are often air sealed and completely water and dust proof and often contain heaters or air conditioners to assist in temperature control. They also have the benefit of being able to house conventional PCs so there is need to keep buying specialist equipment.

Made from durable metals including food grade stainless steel, a decent enclosure should be able to withstand even the most ineffectual forklift driver, some are even bombproof! Many companies opt to store their IT in these enclosures even when the working environments are not particularly hostile, ensuring the protection of not only the expensive hardware but also valuable data.

Every year there are about 8,000 accidents involving forklift trucks (FLT) resulting in injury and deaths are not uncommon.

Even if people are not injured in a forklift accident there is often damage to buildings, equipment or to the forklift itself.

The majority of accidents occur due to poor driver training, badly laid out premises or inadequate FLT maintenance. There are however, certain procedures that if adhered to, can prevent the majority of forklift accidents.

Pedestrians should be prohibited from Forklift lanes where possible, or risks assessed and controlled by the use of signs or barriers which are clearly marked (black and yellow diagonal stripes).

Everybody who is to use a forklift should have adequate training with a recognized body such as RoSPA (Royal Society for the Protection of Accidents) and all pedestrians should wear high visibility clothing when entering an area where forklifts are operating.

Forklifts should be maintained regularly and audible and visual warnings such as reverse bleep or flashing lights should be used and drivers should wear seatbelts to prevent them from falling if the forklift tips over.

All Roadways and aisles should have sufficient width and overhead clearance (for loaded FLTs and for FLTs passing each other if necessary); road humps should be avoided; consideration could be given to a 1-way system if possible and adequate lighting is essential and loading bays etc should be clearly marked and where possible, fitted with barriers and warning devices such as mirrors should be used if barriers cannot be fitted.

Structural features such as columns or machinery should be identified, marked and protected (e.g. with impact barriers) and any delicate equipment such as computers should be protected.

By far the best way of protecting computers, printers and monitors is to use specialist industrial computer enclosures. Made from durable metals including food grade stainless steel, a decent enclosure should be able to withstand even the most ineffectual forklift driver, some are even bombproof! Many companies opt to store their IT in these enclosures even when the working environments are not particularly hostile, ensuring the protection of not only the expensive hardware but also valuable data.

Demands are high for computing in industry. Industrial machines have to cope with many hostile elements whilst also providing reliable computing. Traditionally industrial computers have been specific, bespoke machines. These industrial computers tend to run old hardware and versions of software. Whilst this has the advantage of making the machines stable and reliable, the out-dated technology may mean the processes controlled by the machine are not done as efficiently.

These machines are also very expensive, not just to buy but also the maintenance. Industrial computers have to be maintained by service engineer, often forcing shutdown of production lines they also have to be replaced periodically as the hardware and software will eventually become obsolete. All computers eventually fail but an industrial computer enclosure means that over three generations of computers can use the same enclosure.

Industrial PC enclosures are a more efficient, affordable and reliable alternative to these expensive machines. The main benefits of an industrial computer enclosure are:

1. Withstand the same environments as an industrial computer, whether that is dust (including explosive atmospheres), dirt, grime, oil, grease and water (even completely doused). Enclosures are rated using European IP ratings that give a clear indication to the types of environments the enclosure can operate in, for example IP 65 totally protects dust whilst protecting against strong jets of water, (the first digit, 6, represents the dust protection the second digit, 5, the water) while IP 66 offers the same dust protection but the enclosure can be completely immersed in water.

2. Enclosures can also withstand the same shocks, vibrations and tampering as the enclosure can be built from robust materials and the enclosed PC can be fitted snugly and secured with shock absorbing bolts. Enclosures can also be securely locked and bolted to floors or walls to protect against theft.

3. For computing in extreme temperatures, computer enclosures can in fact work to a better standard than industrial machines as the extra cooling and heating units can be replaced if they are not working as efficiently as they should (a sealed industrial computer that is running too hot or cold would need to be replaced or returned for an upgrade).

4. Computer enclosures can enable a PC to run equally as reliable as an industrial computer as the desktop PC housed in the enclosure can be any conventional machine, from a trusted office workhorse to the latest all singing, all dancing off-the shelf PC.

5. A computer housed in an enclosure is also far cheaper than an industrial computer. Apart from the initial outlay for the expensive bespoke industrial computer, enclosures can out live an industrial machine by over a decade as an industrial computer will eventually have an internal failure (as all computers do) or become completely obsolete and will need replacing. However, an enclosure can be reused to house another machine and will in general house three generations of machines.

6. A computer enclosure can house monitors, printers, touch-screens and all manner of computing equipment (including the peripherals such as mouse and keyboard ) or they can be combined with water/dust proof sealed keyboards and mouse.

7. As an enclosure houses a conventional PC, any repairs or upgrades can be carried out in-house in minutes rather than have to wait for an engineer and have to shutdown the production.

8. Enclosures can be manufactured from a range of material including food grade stainless steel.

9. Enclosures can be lockable and secured to walls or floors to prevent theft or tampering.

10. Enclosures allow you to choose which software or hardware to run inside the enclosure rather than suffer out-dated technology.

With the demands of industrial computing so variable and extreme, industrial PC enclosures offer a flexibility that even conventional industrial computers fail to match whilst also offering the same protection and reliability for a fraction of the cost. PC enclosures are ideal for even the most hostile industrial environment and while specialist PCs will always be required for certain tasks the majority of uses for an industrial computer can be achieved using a conventional PC housed in an industrial computer enclosure .

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With the credit crunch and economic uncertainty, saving money in manufacturing has never been more vital. Costs of raw materials, fuel and power are all rising and many companies are now finding their backs to the walls.

IT is an expensive necessity that most businesses simply couldnâ