Army to see Hiawatha company’s ‘rugged’ electronics

HIAWATHA - A Hiawatha company plans to showcase a new piece of hardware it says could help the U.S. Army safeguard top secret data.

Crystal Group, which designs and manufactures rugged computer and electronic hardware, will feature its latest Network Attached Storage (NAS) solution at the Association of the United States Army's annual meeting in Washington this week.

The military-grade system, announced in August, is capable of withstanding 'the dynamic environments of multidomain battlefields,” Crystal Group said in a recent release.

The system can help the Army maintain a 'technological edge over potential adversaries,” the release continues.

'With a secure, rugged NAS solution that dependably operates in all conditions and is optimized to process and store data at near-zero latency, our customers gain a tactical advantage and confidence that mission-critical data is protected,” said Jim Shaw, the company's executive vice president of engineering.

The NAS solution's features also keep it in compliance with U.S. Department of Defense quality and security requirements, Shaw said.

The system is equipped with FIPS 140-2 data encryption, instant data destruction, real-time data processing and tamper-evident security coatings, the company said.

It consists of the Crystal Group's Fully Optimized Rugged Computer Equipment (FORCE) rugged storage server, RCS7450 network switch and a small form factor rugged embedded computer with a 19-inch display.

The equipment is incorporated into a transit case designed for mobile and tactical environments.

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