BOXX Builds Productivity

By Shoaib Mohammad

Editor’s note: This commentary was sponsored as part of DE’s Visionary Voices section.

There is an ancient Chinese proverb: “May you live in interesting times,” which is also considered by many to be a curse. In the crowded field of professional workstations, there have been many interesting changes over the past decade; large powerhouse companies like Sun, SGI, and even IBM, have exited (or been driven out), mainly because the Microsoft Windows-Intel model has flourished. However, the substantially smaller, yet well respected BOXX Technologies continues to thrive.  

So what makes BOXX so special?  
From its inception more than a decade ago, BOXX chose to be in the business of productivity, i.e., electing to conduct our own research, and focusing on the specific needs and requirements of customers. Our approach is the antithesis of the cookie cutter PC makers, who promote their “one size fits all” approach, usually at the expense of the customer’s productivity. They fail to understand professional creative applications and the specific configurations needed to optimize those workflows.

As a result, misnomers abound—most notably, a belief that the majority of engineering software applications are multi-threaded, therefore requiring Intel Xeon processor technology and NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards. This is simply not the case. In fact, the current lower cost Intel Core i7 processors outperform (in most instances), workstation class Intel Xeon products for single-threaded engineering applications. Similarly, the lower cost, consumer-focused NVIDIA GeForce GPU outperforms workstation-class Quadro products for these same apps. BOXX produces the world’s fastest Intel Xeon-based workstations featuring NIVIDIA Quadro graphics cards, but we only recommend those systems for the right application and workflow—not simply to sell you our most expensive product. As for cloud computing, BOXX does not subscribe to the herd mentality either. Cloud computing may be great for the masses, but is not ideally suited to professionals, specifically lead designers forced to wait long hours uploading or downloading large datasets via the Internet.

Focus on Productivity
Since BOXX is in the business of productivity, we design and build our 3DBOXX workstations and dedicated rendering systems (including chassis) at our production facility in Austin, TX. And because BOXX is a smaller company, we have the advantage of being agile, enabling us to rapidly adopt these leading technologies in response to customer needs. BOXX labs consistently strives to develop optimal configurations in order to help improve our customers’ overall productivity—even if that means pushing the envelope with processes like overclocking, liquid cooling, putting four GPUs in a desktop workstation chassis, using Intel Smart Response Technology (which provides faster caching of data), and 2133 MHz DDR3 memory for maximum overall performance. To top it all off, BOXX products are backed by full, three-year warranty.

The Professional’s Choice
Another key reason why BOXX is the professional’s choice is that we are a solution provider. Our expert sales consultants, engineers, and legendary technical support not only know everything about our Autodesk and SolidWorks-certified hardware; they also have intimate knowledge of these professional software applications and optimal workflows. If you have ever experienced the frustration inherent in conversing with the tech support of our competitors, you know that they are sorely lacking in this regard.

Those who argue that BOXX customers pay a premium for our solutions also believe that the only way to succeed in the hardware business is by shipping US manufacturing, support, (and even most engineering jobs) halfway around the world. In both instances, they obviously miss the point. Sure, most customers want lower cost products. However, they do not want them at the expense of their own productivity. BOXX is occasionally referred to as “The Apple of the PC Industry” for good reason, as we have carved out a niche as workflow experts, designers and producers of the world’s fastest workstations and innovative rendering products. Although we take tremendous pride in record-setting performance and rave reviews from industry publications and independent testing, our greatest satisfaction comes from the daily accolades we receive from customers who have never experienced a level of performance like this before. We hear time and again how BOXX solutions have profoundly impacted their businesses, saving them countless hours while increasing their profits.

Review a sample list of a few of our thousands of incredibly satisfied customers, their glowing recommendations, and customer stories at boxxtech.com/customers.

Shoaib Mohammad is Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at BOXX Technologies.