Crystal Group brings latest small-SWaP, high-performance rugged server to Sea Air Space 2018

HIAWATHA, Iowa. Crystal Group Inc., a designer/manufacturer of rugged computer and electronic hardware, is bringing its all-new RS1.533S18G Rugged Server and other advanced technologies for aerospace and defense applications, to the Navy League’s Sea Air Space Expo in National Harbor, Maryland.

Crystal Group’s RS1.533S18G rugged 1.5U server is designed for applications where compute density, thermal management, and shock/vibe endurance in a small form factor are crucial, says Jim Shaw, Crystal Group executive vice president of engineering. “Mission-critical naval operations demand highly reliable performance of rugged computer hardware, often in harsh environments.”

More than 500 military and government programs – including high-profile U.S. Navy programs such as the P-8A Poseidon, MQ-8 Fire Scout, and RQ-21A Blackjack – use Crystal Group rugged computer hardware for industry-leading performance and resistance to threatening conditions, Shaw adds.

Crystal Group’s RS1.533S18G Rugged 1.5U Server, front (left) and rear (right), is field tested and can support a variety of mission profiles in harsh naval environments such as temperature extremes, high shock and vibration, electromagnetic interference (EMI), and humidity, without loss of performance, protection and mobility.Several Crystal Group technologists and rugged computing solutions, including the following, are on hand at Sea Air Space booth 2719. Crystal Group’s RS1.533S18G is designed, manufactured, and tested to provide a low-risk path for military technology insertion, sustainment, and modernization programs to improve mission uptime and system availability in the field and at the tactical edge. Measuring just 18 inches deep and weighing 25 to 30 pounds, the new rack-mount server with enhanced cooling can quickly and easily replace aging, faulty systems in 1.5U/1U configurations. Crystal Group FORCE (Fully Optimized Rugged Computer Equipment) 1U, 2U, and 3U Rugged Servers are high-bandwidth, low-latency, high-performance computing (HPC) systems optimized for size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C). Crystal Group FORCE Rugged Servers with Intel Xeon Scalable processors and state-of-the-art liquid cooling (2U dissipates 280W of CPU power), offer superior compute and greater reliability in harsh elements, such as shock and vibration, temperature extremes, and humidity. Crystal Group’s RACE (Rugged Autonomous Computer Equipment) line is engineered to accelerate time to deployment of autonomous vehicle (AV), automated driving system (ADS), and unmanned (UAV) projects. Crystal Group’s turnkey RACE0161 solution provides the horsepower autonomous and unmanned systems need, combining robust I/O, multiple GPU capacity, dual Intel Xeon Scalable Processors, sophisticated thermal management, and other high-quality components stabilized in a rugged, aluminum enclosure measuring just 6.5 x 14.1 x 15.6 inches, and weighing 30 to 40 pounds. The RS114PS18 1U Rugged Carbon Fiber Server delivers high end computing performance in a carbon fiber chassis that offers leading edge Intel Sandy Bridge, Ivy Bridge, or Haswell options. The unit measures 1.75 x 17.5 x 18 inches and weighs 12 to 14 pounds. The RS114PS18 offers up to 512 GB memory, up to six removeable, 2.5-inch drive bays and is expandable with one slot.

Crystal Group Inc., maker of rugged computer hardware, specializes in the design and manufacture of custom and commercial rugged servers, embedded computing, networking devices, displays, power supplies, and data storage for high reliability in harsh environments. An employee-owned small business founded in 1987, Crystal Group provides the defense, government and industrial markets with in-house customization, engineering, integration, configuration management, product lifecycle planning, warranty, and support services.

Crystal Group products meet or exceed IEEE, IEC, and military standards (MIL-STD-810, 167-1, 461, MIL-S-901); are backed by warranty (5+ year) with in-house support; and are manufactured in the company’s Hiawatha, Iowa, USA, facility certified to AS9100C:2009 and ISO 9001:2008 quality management standards.