Panasonic Expands National Cooperative Purchasing Agreement to Include Toughpad Tablets

Panasonic System Communications Company of North America, a leading provider of technology solutions for government and public safety agencies, today announced an amendment by the City of Tucson, AZ to the contract available through the National Intergovernmental Purchasing Alliance Company (National IPA) to include the Toughpad™ family of rugged, reliable enterprise-grade tablets. With this addition, public and nonprofit agencies across the country have a new, efficient method to purchase Panasonic’s industry-leading family of tablet computers built for jobs that demand reliable and secure technology able to withstand challenging conditions – including law enforcement and first responders, field inspectors and medical professionals.

The National IPA works with public and nonprofit agencies and municipalities to competitively solicit national contracts for aggregated use, realizing significant time and cost savings. Through these publicly solicited and competitively awarded cooperative purchasing agreements, public agencies, municipalities and educational institutions benefit from national pricing and a simplified process while remaining compliant with procurement procedures. Panasonic is adding the Toughpad family of tablets to a full line of technology solutions currently available through the existing agreement with National IPA that was awarded by the City of Tucson. The full range of products include professional displays and digital signage, projectors, professional video cameras and AV equipment, video teleconferencing, scanners, whiteboards, mounts, security and surveillance products and antennas, Toughbook™ mobile computers and Arbitrator® 360° mobile digital video systems.

Each of Panasonic’s Toughpad tablets features a MIL-STD-810G all-weather IP65 dust- and water-resistant design, and is able to survive a drop of 4 feet or more. They also offer daylight-viewable screens, long-life batteries, wireless connectivity options, enhanced security and the industry's most comprehensive 3-year warranty. Toughpad tablets are ideal for a host of demanding usage scenarios, including inventory control, eForms, field sales, field service, route delivery, eCitations, electronic medical records, inspections, mobile point-of-sales and Geographic Information Systems.

Panasonic’s Toughpad family of rugged and reliable tablets includes:

Toughpad FZ-G1: A lightweight, fully-rugged 10-inch tablet featuring Windows® 8 Pro
Toughpad JT-B1: a 7-inch easy-to-carry, easy-to-see rugged Android™-powered tablet
Toughpad FZ-A1, a 10-inch FIPS 140-2-compliant rugged Android-powered tablet

“Tablets are becoming increasingly adopted for use by agencies nationwide; however, many popular, consumer-grade tablets fall short in their ability to handle the real-world conditions that many public workers face every day – especially those who don’t spend their days in an office,” said Ken Heckman, vice president with National IPA. “This contract expansion makes it easier than ever for agencies to invest in the technology that enables true government mobility.”

“Panasonic has been a leading provider of rugged mobile technology to government professionals for many years, and our new Toughpad family of tablets is a new avenue to provide our customers with innovative, mobile solutions to meet their evolving needs,” said Michelle Chapin, senior director of contracts and bids, Panasonic System Communications Company of North America. “Through our partnership with National IPA, government agencies, municipalities and educational institutions can now take advantage of a full range of next-generation technologies through one affordable, streamlined process.”

About Panasonic Solutions for Business

Built on a celebrated engineering foundation, Panasonic architects business technology solutions that help build a better world. Customers in government, healthcare, production, education and a wide variety of commercial enterprises, large and small, depend on integrated solutions from Panasonic to help them acquire, manage and interpret the information that drives innovation. The complete suite of Panasonic solutions addresses unified business communications, mobile computing, security and surveillance systems, retail information systems, office productivity solutions, high definition visual conferencing, projectors, professional displays and HD and 3D video production. As a result of its commitment to R&D, manufacturing and quality control, Panasonic engineers reliable and long-lasting solutions as a partner for continuous improvement. Panasonic solutions for business are delivered by Panasonic System Communications Company of North America, which is a division of Panasonic Corporation of North America, the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC).

All brand and company/product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies. All specifications are subject to change without notice. Information on Panasonic solutions for business can be obtained by calling 877-803-8492 or at www.panasonic.com.

About Panasonic Corporation of North America

Based in Secaucus, NJ, Panasonic Corporation of North America provides a broad line of digital and other electronics products and services for consumer, business and industrial use. The company is the principal North American subsidiary of Osaka, Japan-based Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC), and the hub of Panasonic’s U.S. branding, marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. Panasonic is committed to becoming the electronics industry's leader in green innovation by its one-hundredth anniversary in 2018. In the 2012 Interbrand Annual Best Global Green Brands ranking, the Panasonic brand jumped four spots to number six: http://www.interbrand.com/en/best-global-brands/Best-Global-Green-Brands/2012-Report.aspx. As part of its continuing efforts to reduce its carbon footprint, Panasonic Corporation of North America will relocate its operations to a new eco-efficient office tower adjacent to a mass transit hub in Newark, NJ in 2013. Information about Panasonic Eco Ideas initiatives is available at http://panasonic.net/eco/ecoideas. Information about Panasonic and its products is available at www.panasonic.com. Additional company information for journalists is also available at www.panasonic.com/pressroom.

About National Intergovernmental Purchasing Alliance Company

National Intergovernmental Purchasing Alliance Company (National IPA) is a cooperative purchasing organization established for public agencies across the United States with the specific purpose of reducing procurement costs by leveraging group volume.

All master agreements are publicly solicited, awarded through an RFP process, and held by a Principal Procurement Agency. Each agreement includes the required language allowing intergovernmental (“piggybacking”) contract usage. This is an optional use program with no fee to participate. By utilizing these pre-competed cooperative agreements, agencies eliminate duplication of effort and save valuable time, resources and money.

Eligible agencies include: