Rugged by Design

How hot does it get inside a steel mill?

For one employee of Data Limited, the experience of installing a system of rugged computers literally melted the soles of his steel-toed shoes.

But that's all part of the job for the small company tucked away in an industrial park in Lehigh Acres, an area better known for residential foreclosures during the recession.

Data Limited has a surprisingly high-profile roster of clients, from Disney to McDonald's to the Dish satellite company. It designs and manufactures rugged computers, tablets and portable devices that can function in tough environments for corporate clients.

For example, you might find Data Limited portable devices on carts when you pay for food at Walt Disney World in Orlando, or when you order a hamburger outside a McDonald's restaurant in England or inside the thousands of Dish vans that install satellite-television systems all over the U.S.

Among the biggest challenges to designing rugged computers is dealing with heat. Robert Tortolano, director of manufacturing and design, says the company has developed an ingenious water-cooling system for one of its tablets: Instead of an internal fan, a tiny copper tube filled with water cools parts of the computer that tend to heat up when in use.

Customers also want computers that are lighter and faster. To accommodate them, the company has found batteries that weigh less than competing products but still provide enough power to last through the workday.

The plastic shell means the computer can safely be dropped 4 feet off the ground. One outer shell even has an anti-microbial coating for use in health care settings.

Data Limited has a team of six people in the engineering department in Lehigh Acres and another 20 employees in Taiwan who design the computers and buy the necessary parts in Asia. “It keeps our costs down,” says Tortolano.

In total, the company has about 45 employees inside a nondescript 27,000-square-foot building that has no outdoor sign. The company builds “thousands” of computers, but it doesn't disclose annual revenues. The computers, which come in eight models, cost between $1,000 and $2,000 each. The software varies from Microsoft to Android systems.

Bryan Wesolek founded the company in the small town of La Porte, Ind.,in 1991. Brother Troy Wesolek joined him in 1994 as operations manager. The story is classic entrepreneur: Bryan Wesolek started the company in his garage fixing broken computers for a grocery chain and realized companies needed more rugged hardware that would be less susceptible to damage.

The Wesoleks moved the company to Lehigh Acres last year because they were having trouble finding qualified employees in Indiana. In addition, they wanted to be closer to an international airport. In Indiana, Chicago was an hour and a half away at best. “We were having trouble finding talent,” says Troy Wesolek.

So far, Data Limited has found employees in Lehigh Acres by recruiting them from the east coast and through ITT Technical Institute. “We have a real good relationship with them,” says Tortolano. “We're in the process of getting our second production line going.”

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