Choosing Rugged Tablets for a Facilities and Maintenance Team

For most in-house maintenance and facilities teams, the device to start with is the Tuga A10 at £449: a 10.1 inch Android tablet, sealed to IP68, with NFC for asset tags and a pogo pin connector for a drop-in Charging Dock, so it lives on the dock between shifts and goes out with whoever is on. If the device has to ride in a pocket up a ladder, the Tuga A6 at £349 is the handheld. If your maintenance system or building management software is Windows only, or you need to plug an Ethernet lead into a panel, the Tuga W10 at £649 is the Windows option. Our facilities and maintenance page covers what the job does to a device. This guide is the specification behind that answer, for whoever has to put a number on a purchase request.

Start With One Work Order, Not With a Spec Sheet

An in-house team usually buys a pool of devices that belong to the shift, and the work arrives from a CMMS. So take a typical work order and walk it through the shift. Each step sets a requirement.

1. The job appears. The technician opens the CMMS app and sees the work order. Requirement: the app runs on the device's operating system and version.
2. They find the asset. They tap an NFC tag on the pump, or scan a QR label. Requirement: NFC or a camera the app can scan with, and an app that supports it on your platform.
3. They do the work. The device is put down on a plant frame, a parapet or a wet floor. Requirement: sealing, and a drop rating if it will be used at height.
4. They record the result. A meter reading, a photo of the gauge, a note. Requirement: a camera that copes with a dark plant room.
5. They close the job. In a basement with no signal. Requirement: an app that works offline and syncs later, which is a question for the vendor, not for us.
6. They hand the device over. Requirement: a charged battery for the next person, which in practice means a dock.

Step 1: Let the CMMS Choose the Operating System

Most CMMS apps are built for Android and iOS, with a browser version for the office. A smaller number of maintenance and building management systems only run on a Windows PC. Whichever yours is, it decides the platform.

Ask the vendor three things: which operating systems and minimum versions the mobile app supports, whether it supports NFC and camera scanning on that platform, and how it behaves offline. Our works-with pages collect the published requirements for a number of maintenance systems and show which Tuga models meet them, for example MaintainX, Fiix CMMS and Limble CMMS. They match published figures to our listed specs, not a claim that we have run the app on the device, so trial your own system on one unit before you buy the pool.

On Android, the version matters. The A10 runs Android 14 and the A6 Android 15. The Tuga A8 runs Android 12, which is older, so check it against the vendor's minimum with more care. On Windows, the W10 and Tuga W8 run Windows 11 Pro and the Tuga WH6 runs Windows 11 IoT. If you are unsure which way to go, our guide to Android versus Windows rugged tablets has a five minute test.

Step 2: Shared Pool or Assigned Device

A shared pool suits shift-based teams. The devices live on docks in the maintenance office, and the spec needs a dock per device or per pair, a screen protector on every unit from day one, a strap, and a plan for logins. Some CMMS vendors publish a shared device or kiosk mode; others expect each technician to sign in and out. Ask. A shared device also needs a PIN the shift knows, changed when people leave.

An assigned device suits a small team where each technician has a patch. The spec is simpler: a holster or hand strap, a charger, and the person looks after it.

Either way, standardise on one model. Spares, chargers, docks, protectors and training all get simpler when every device is the same. Our guide to buying rugged tablets for a small team explains why, and how the volume discount works.

Step 3: Match the Sealing and Temperature to the Buildings

Specify for the worst room on the estate, not the average one.

• IP65 (WH6, W8, W10) is dust tight and protected against water jets from any direction. It is not rated for immersion.
• IP67 (A6, A8) adds immersion to a metre for 30 minutes.
• IP68 (A10) is rated for immersion beyond IP67. Our IP68 versus IP67 guide explains the difference in full.

None of our devices is rated IP69K, so none should be pressure washed. For roof plant and roof spaces, add a drop rating: the A10 and WH6 are tested to MIL-STD-810H, the W8 to MIL-STD-810G with 1.22 metre drops, and the A6 and WH6 are rated for 1.5 metre drops. No drop rating is listed for the A8 or W10.

The listed upper operating temperatures are 60°C for the A10, WH6 and W8 and 50°C for the A6. The A8 and W10 list no operating temperature range, so for a hot plant room pick one with a published figure.

Step 4: Tags, Readings and Photos

Every Tuga model lists NFC, so tap-to-identify asset tags are covered on any of them, provided your CMMS supports NFC on your platform. Our guide to what NFC on a work tablet is actually for explains what it does and does not do. For QR or barcode labels, the camera does the reading on most models. If the team scans dozens of labels a day, the A6 has a built-in Zebra 2D scan engine with two side scan keys, and scanner versions of the WH6 (£779), W8 (£699) and W10 (£729) exist. Our barcode scanner guide covers when a built-in engine is worth the money.

Meter readings and condition photos happen in dark cupboards and ceiling voids. The A6, A8 and A10 list a 13MP rear camera with a flash. The WH6 and W8 list an 8MP rear camera and the W10 a 5MP rear camera, and no flash is listed for the Windows models. Our guide to taking site photos that hold up covers framing and backing up.

The Devices, Against the Six Requirements

Tuga A10: The Shared Android Tablet

The Tuga A10 at £449 is the one to specify for a shared pool on Android. A 10.1 inch 1920 x 1200 screen gives a work order, its checklist and the asset history room without scrolling. IP68, MIL-STD-810H, rated from -20°C to 60°C, 680g, with 8GB RAM, 128GB storage and a microSD slot up to 2TB. The 13MP camera has a flash, NFC is built in, and the pogo pin connector means it drops into the Charging Dock. Two honest limits: the 350 nit screen is fine indoors and in plant rooms but harder to read on a bright roof, and the 8000mAh battery is not removable, so the dock is doing the work a spare battery does elsewhere.

Tuga A6: The Handheld for the Ladder

The Tuga A6 at £349 is a 6 inch Android 15 handheld at 277g, sealed to IP67, rated for 1.5 metre drops, with a removable 5050mAh battery, NFC, a 13MP camera with flash and a built-in 2D scanner. It suits a technician who is up and down ladders all day, or a site where every asset carries a barcode. The 6 inch screen means a long checklist is scrolled. A Belt Holster is £22.

Tuga W10: Windows With an Ethernet Port

The Tuga W10 at £649 runs Windows 11 Pro on an Intel N100 with 8GB RAM, and has RJ45 Ethernet, HDMI, USB-A and USB-C on board. That port selection is the reason to specify it: a Windows only maintenance system, or a building management panel that only talks over a cable. It is rated IP65, has NFC and a removable 5000mAh battery, docks in the Charging Dock, and weighs 1197g. No drop rating, MIL-STD rating or operating temperature is listed, and 4G is an option rather than standard.

Tuga WH6: Windows in a Holster

The Tuga WH6 at £699 is the Windows handheld: a 6.5 inch screen, Intel Celeron N5100, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage, IP65, MIL-STD-810H, 1.5 metre drops, a removable 4000mAh battery, NFC and 4G. It costs £250 more than the A6, so it earns its place only where the software has to be Windows. Its own WH6 Charging Cradle is £79.

Writing the Kit List

For a shared A10 or W10 pool, specify these with the devices rather than afterwards:

• Charging Dock, £49.99, fits the A10, W8 and W10. One per device, or one per two if shifts overlap.
• Tempered Glass Screen Protector (2 Pack), £14, fits every model.
• Hand Strap, £24, for the A8, A10, W8 and W10.

For handhelds, swap the dock and straps for a Belt Holster (£22) on the A6 or WH6, and the WH6 Charging Cradle (£79) for the WH6. Everything is on the accessories page. Our guide to making a tablet battery last a full shift covers the settings side.

A Worked Budget for a Six-Person Team

Six Tuga A10s at £449 come to £2,694. Six devices falls in the 5 to 9 band, so the automatic 8% team discount takes £215.52 off, leaving £2,478.48 for the devices. Add two Charging Docks (£99.98), six screen protector packs (£84) and six hand straps (£144), and the kit is £327.98 at list price, for a total around £2,806. Adding the 3-Year Warranty at £65 per A10 is another £390. The bulk pricing page works it out for any mix of models. There is no VAT to add, and delivery to UK addresses is free in 7 to 10 working days. For a quote or a proforma invoice, use the contact form.

Before You Sign the Purchase Request

1. Buy one first. Install your CMMS, tap your actual asset tags, and close a work order in the worst basement you have. A fortnight with one device saves a difficult conversation about six.
2. Confirm offline behaviour with the vendor. It is the app that works offline, not the tablet.
3. Think about the warranty. Every device comes with 12 months. The 3-Year Warranty is £65 on the A6, A8 and A10, £79 on the W8 and W10 and £89 on the WH6. For fleets of five or more devices, Total Care adds a swap unit with your software image, on a quote; details are on the warranty page.
4. Write the serial numbers into your own asset register when the devices arrive.

Compare head to head: A6 vs A8 · A8 vs A10 · A10 vs WH6