Teguar TM-5900-24

Impressive, high-performance 24-inch All-in-One PC designed and optimized for medical cart and similar deployments
(by Conrad H. Blickenstorfer)

Teguar is a Charlotte, North Carolina, based tech company that provides state-of-the-art industrial PCs and medical computer solutions. All their products are designed for reliable 24/7/365 performance in demanding environments and applications such as shop floors, clean rooms, emergency rooms and outdoors in all sorts of weather. That means all-in-one panel PCs and monitors of all kinds and sizes, as well as box PCs and rugged tablets.

In this article we're taking a detailed look at the Teguar TM-5900-24, one of the company's medical All-in-One PCs.

The question comes up why a company that primarily specializes in panel computers and other industrial-grade computing equipment would also offer All-in-One PCs. Isn't that Apple territory with the iMac, or, on the Microsoft Windows side, that of Dell, HP, Lenovo and the like? The answer often is no, because consumer and enterprise desktop All-in-Ones simply are not tough, durable, and mobile enough for many healthcare settings.

In that case, then why not just get standard industrial Panel PCs for such applications? Primarily because those are made for use in panels, and they are generally too big and heavy and not mobile enough for anything but their intended industrial uses. So with their medical and industrial All-in-Ones, Teguar identified a niche that's somewhere between an iMac and a Panel PC, and the TM-5900-24 All-in-One computer, designed and optimized for general medical settings, is a prime example.

There are numerous applications for this class of systems. One of them is use as a medical cart computer. Medical carts are essentially computer workstations on wheels. They are increasingly popular in healthcare settings because they allow medical staff to easily access computing resources that cannot be provided by tablets or handhelds right to the bedside. That may include data collection, charting, dispensing of medication, review of records and physicians' orders and more. Properly equipped and deployed medical cart computers can save time, increase productivity and save money compared to conducting work at stationary computers at a central nurses station.

Another increasingly popular application is telehealth. Appropriately equipped, telehealth computers can provide remote healthcare services via video conferencing and integrated medical software. Among advantages are improved access to healthcare for remote or underserved populations, convenience for patients with mobility or time constraints, cost savings by reducing physical visits, and enhanced monitoring and communication for optimal patient care.

Medical vs consumer All-in-One computers

All-in-Ones like the TM-5900-24 are popular because they merge the traditional PC "tower" and desktop monitor into one slender package, saving space and eliminating cabling. But how is a medical All-in-One PC different from a consumer or business version?

• Designed and built for use in healthcare — Consumer tech is designed to look cool and be as light as possible. Medical computing equipment is built to last, uses antimicrobial materials, and is designed for easy cleaning and disinfecting in healthcare settings.

• Mounting options — Consumer All-in-Ones have a stand and that's that. Medical All-in-Ones like the Teguar TM-5900-24 may be mounted in various ways, stationary or on medical carts. VESA 75 and 100 hole patterns in the back allow access to an almost infinite variety of mounting arms, brackets, clamps, etc.

• Plentiful I/Os — While consumer All-in-Ones offer basic I/O, often just a couple of USB ports, health care systems offer much more. The TM-5900-24, for example, has dual LAN jacks, eight USB ports, legacy COM port, and HDMI. If something else is needed, Teguar can likely provide it.

• Easy access to expansion — Consumer All-in-Ones are pretty much closed systems that are difficult to open and service. The Teguar TM-5900-24 offers easy access to the interior with slots, sockets and ports.

• Silent, fanless operation — Almost all consumer All-in-Ones need fans. Which can mean distracting noise, unwanted airflow, and filters that need frequent cleaning. Despite its high performance the Teguar TM-5900-24 uses passive cooling and doesn't need a fan.

• Extended life cycle — Consumer and enterprise tech is quickly obsolete. Medical systems such as the TM-5900-24 offer guaranteed life cycle support for up to several years.

• Flexible power — Consumer and enterprise All-in-Ones run on standard wall outlet power. Dedicated medical and industrial versions may accept a wide range of input power and also may have internal battery options.

The importance of using the right materials and material properties cannot be overstated. In any medical setting, the danger of infection is ever-present. Bacteria and infectious debris can hide anywhere. Minimizing the risk of spreading infection and disease is crucial. For medical computers that means using medical grade plastics with antibacterial coatings, minimizing of cracks and crevices where grime can accumulate, IP65-rated full flush touch screens that can handle frequent cleaning, spills, and splashes. Further, medical PCs also have 4KV isolation so potential electrical shocks won't be transferred to users, patient, or connected devices and peripherals.

Unlike general purpose consumer and enterprise All-in-Ones, dedicated healthcare systems come in many varieties, meeting numerous special needs. Teguar's medical computer lineup starts with very compact 10-inch display models all the way up to large ones with 30 inch screens and larger. While consumer All-in-Ones are general purpose computers and must be equipped to handle a wide variety of workloads, medical and industrial designs are often deployed for very specific tasks. Which means they are offered with a variety of CPU, I/O, power, environment, and mounting options.

Teguar offers over two dozen different medical computers, medical monitors and displays, medical tablets and medical cart computers. The table below shows the specs of a small sub-section as of early 2024, systems with 24-inch displays.

Teguar Medical Computers

Company	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar
Model	TM-5900-24	TM-5557-22	TM-5510-24	TM-5010-24	TMD-10-24
Type	Medical All-in-One PC	Medical Panel PC	Medical Cart PC	Medical PC	Medical Monitor
Screen size	23.8"	21.5"	23.8"	23.8"	23.8"
Screen resolution	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080
Screen pixel per inch	93 dpi	102 dpi	93 dpi	93 dpi	93 dpi
Screen aspect ratio	16 : 9	16 : 9	16 : 9	16 : 9	16 : 9
Screen luminance	250 nits	250 nits	250 nits	250 nits	250 nits
Touch	PCAP	PCAP	PCAP	PCAP	PCAP
Intel CPU	Core i5-1135G7	7th Gen Core i5/i7 or Celeron	7th Gen Core i5/i7 or Celeron	6th Gen Core or Celeron	NA (monitor)
RAM	8-32GB DDR4	4-32GB DDR4	4-16GB DDR4	4-32GB DDR4	NA (monitor)
RAM slots	2 x DDR4 SO-DIMM	2 x DDR4 SO-DIMM	1 x DDR4 SO-DIMM	2 x DDR4 SO-DIMM	NA (monitor)
Cooling	Passive - Fanless	Passive - Fanless	Passive - Fanless	Passive - Fanless	Passive - Fanless
Mass storage	1 x 2.5" SATA	1 x 2.5" SATA	1 x 2.5" SATA	1 x 2.5" SATA	NA (monitor)
Storage M.2	1 x M.2	1 x M.2 SATA 2280	1 x M.2 SATA	NA	NA (monitor)
Serial	1 x COM	4 x COM	1 x COM	2 x COM	NA (monitor)
Expansion	1 x mPCIe, 1 x M.2	1 x mPCIe, 1 x M.2	1 x mPCIe, 1 x M.2, 1 x PCIe	1 x mPCIe, 1 x M.2	NA (monitor)
HDMI	1 x HDMI	1 x HDMI	NA	NA	1 x HDMI
DisplayPort	NA	NA	2 x DisplayPort	2 x DisplayPort	1 x DisplayPort
DVI-D	NA	NA	NA	NA	1 x DVI-D
USB	4 x 2.0, 4 x 3.0	1 x 2.0, 3 x 3.0	4 x 3.0, opt. 2 x 3.1	2 x USB 3.0, 2x USB 3.1	1 x USB 2.0
Speakers	2 x 3 watt	2 x 2 watt	2 x 2 watt	2 x 5 watt	2 x 5 watt
IP rating	IP65 Front	IP65 Front	IP65 Front	IP65 Front	IP65 Front
Size (mm)	581 x 351 x 43	530 x 347 x 45	594 x 397 x 56	606 x 398 x 66	606 x 398 x 66
Weight	17.2 lbs (7.8 kg)	11.2 lbs (5.0 kg)	19.8 lbs (9.0 kg)	19.8 lbs (9.0 kg)	19.1 lbs (8.7 kg)
Power Input	DC 19V	DC 19V	DC 14~28V	DC 9~48V	DC 12V
Battery	Optional (up to 2 hrs)	Optional (up to 2 hrs)	3 x batteries (8+ hrs)	3 x batteries (up to 12 hrs)	No
Hot-Swappable	No	No	Yes	Yes	NA
Product page	TM-5900-24	TM-5557-22	TM-5510-22	TM-5010-24	TMD-10-24

At first sight, all five of of these Teguar medical systems seem quite similar. All but one have 24-inch screens with the same resolution, all have capacitive multi-touch displays, all have exceptionally rich I/O, and even weight doesn't vary a lot. So what sets them apart?

For one thing, the power supply. They range from 12 to 19 Volt fixed, to a range as wide as 9-48 Volt. Most can also be battery-powered, with optional battery power lasting from two hours all the way to more than a full shift. For the most part, there's enough optional battery to last long enough to make it through outages or for moving the cart to a different location without shutting the computer down.

Available battery operation means independence from power cords and outlets. And the ability to accept a wide range of input voltage makes them suitable for installations that generate their own power (such as vehicles).

Another difference is in the available processors. While all four of the listed medical computer systems offer powerful Intel Core processors, the processors are from different generations, ranging from Intel 6th generation "Skylake" to 7th generation "Kaby Lake" and 11th generation "Tiger Lake." All provide significant performance, but there are differences. Intel Core processors are high-end, and so Teguar offers some of the systems also with budget-friendly Celeron processors.

Also of importance may be the type of available mass storage. All of the PC systems offer standard or optional 2.5-inch SATA hard disk or solid state disk support. Three offer M.2 module support. M.2 may support both SATA and PCIe NVMe based storage modules, and is generally faster, especially when used with NVMe storage, so keep that in mind.

If audio is important, internal stereo speaker output ranges from two to five watts, and some support external speaker bolt-ons.

Now let's take a closer look at the TM-5900-24 All-in-One medical cart computer unit Teguar sent RuggedPCReview.com for evaluation.

Teguar TM-5900-24 — Designed and built for healthcare

Teguar's literature describes the TM-5900-24 as "an absolute powerhouse of a medical all-in-one PC." And it is, in more ways than one. There's performance. Whereas most industrial and vertical market computers usually come with just enough processing power to get the job done (why pay extra for power an application never needs?), the TM-5900-24 is using a general purpose, high-performance Intel Core chip, a processor designed to be able to handle any and all load that comes its way, just like enterprise desktops and laptops do.

The TM-5900-24 is also a powerhouse in terms of connectivity and expansion. And it is both beautiful to look at and it is built like a tank. The front part is all glass, mounted onto an extensive one-piece, contoured cast-aluminum body/chassis with a gorgeous silver powder coat finish both outside and inside. Compared to consumer and enterprise All-in-Ones, the TM-5900-24 is in an entirely different class. Yet, despite its super-solid construction, it weighs a relatively modest 17 pounds, just five pounds or so more than your typical fragile 24-inch consumer All-in-One.

The compilation of pictures below shows the TM-5900-24 from the front and all four sides:

All I/O is on the back, facing down. An easily removable cover shields cables from view. On the bottom is the power/sleep button. Volume and brightness up/down is via touch controls on the right front. Like most all-in-one computers, the TM-5900-24 has a front-facing camera for conferencing or video calls. Unlike most, however, it also has a simple mechanical lever that physically covers up the camera. This alleviates potential privacy fears — there is no way that potential hackers can move or circumvent a physical lever.

Below you can see the TM-5900-24's down-facing I/O block on the backside of the unit. Here it becomes clear that this is definitely a professional-grade device, made for deployments where dual LAN jacks, as many onboard USB ports as possible, a legacy serial DB9 port, HDMI for secondary video, and an audio jack are all common and often mandatory. To the right of the I/O block is access to the system's easily removable 2-1/2-inch solid state (or hard) drive, on the left is where the optional internal battery goes.

Below is a look at the backside of the Teguar TM-5900-24. In the center you can see the very solid metal plate with it two sets of screw holes for either VESA 75 or VESA 100 mounting. Behind the vents to the left and right of the mounting plate are the two internal 3-watt speakers. The bottom third is recessed and houses the computer's interface ports.

Opening up the Teguar TM-5900-24 becomes necessary to replace or upgrade components such as RAM, solid state or rotating mass storage, wireless communication modules, or the optional internal battery. Doing so requires undoing a few Philips head screws and then carefully unsnapping the back cover. Do not use metal tools for that, and take your time so as not to brake any of the clips.

Once the rear plastic cover has been removed (which is easy because there are no wires or ribbons between the front and the back), you get to see the inside of the Teguar TM-5900-24. At first sight it's all metal, aluminum, that provides shielding, structure, and support. The heavy-duty center rectangle makes for a very strong and solid VESA mounting base with both th 75mm and the 100mm screw pattern.

The hefty VESA mount anchor plate is easily removed. Beneath it is the very compact 7.25 x 5 inch motherboard. In its center sits the processor that has a black metal cooling sink on top of it. The cooling sink has a silicone-based square thermal pad on it to conduct heat to the heavy anchor play and the metal housing of the unit.

Once the motherboard cover plate is removed, there's access to the unit's dual SO-DIMM RAM slots (our eval unit came with an 8GB PC4-3200 RAM module) and the mini-PCIe and A-key M.2 2280 expansion slots. Our review unit also came with an Intel AX210NGW WiFi/Bluetooth M.2 module.

For mass storage, the default is a standard 2.5-inch solid state disk. Our unit had a SATA 1.5/3/6G bps Phison module. There is storage support for either M.2 SATA or 2.5-inch SSD storage, so dual disks may be possible.

All I/O is edge-mounted on the motherboard. There are two internal 3-watt speakers mounted in their own pre-cast cubbies in the chassis. Teguar also offers an external stereo speaker bolt-on option.

The TM-5900-24 comes with a conventional 90-watt power supply with a screw-on power jack. Optionally available is a rechargeable 108.5 watt-hour Li-Ion battery that's, per spec sheet, good for up to two hours of operation. That's more battery power than most high-performance laptops have, so two hours may be conservative.In fact, we put that to the test with PCMark 10's comprehensive battery life test that keeps exercising the computer continuously with typical workloads until the battery is exhausted. The TM-5900-24 ran 3:34 hours in that test, easily bettering the spec sheet's two hour estimate.

Having that much internal battery power means that the TM-5900-24 is not only immune to most power outages, but it can also easily be moved around a facility without powering down. Likewise, it can be mounted and used on a medical cart without relying on outlets wherever it goes.

As far as ruggedness goes, while the Teguar TM-5900-24 is technically a mobile device when used on a medical cart, it is not one that's being carried around. Hence no drop specs and such. The TM-5900-24 is designed as an indoor unit and to be used in a temperature range from 32 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit, and its front panel is IP65 rated. That means the front panel can handle low-pressure jets of water from all direction, making it easy to clean and disinfect the front of the unit. Teguar specifically lists almost 30 cleaners and disinfectants that can be used on the computer's chemical-resistant exterior.

Smart performance with Intel 11th gen Core processors

Teguar's various types of All-in-One and medical cart PCs generally offer the performance of a consumer or enterprise laptop. That means various levels of Intel's i3/i5/i7 lineup of "U" Series mobile Core processors, where the "U" stands for "Ultra Low Voltage," the kind that offer good performance without generating a lot of heat that needs to removed with noisy fans.

Such processors have low Thermal Design Power, generally listed as "TDP", ratings. TDP is an Intel measure for the amount of heat that a device needs to be able to dissipate, and it's also a measure of relative performance.

But if a lot of heat is the byproduct of high performance, does that mean that computers with low thermal design power processors are slow? That was indeed an issue in the past, but things have changed thanks to processors' "turbo" power. In a computer processor, turbo means the chip can run at very high frequencies, but only until it gets too hot. Then it must slow down to cool off. The advantage is that can handle very high peak loads. The disadvantage is that they can only do that for so long, making for uneven performance.

Intel has been working for years to optimize the concept, and the 11th generation of Intel Core processors has brought some real progress. The processors' TDP can now be configured according to the intended use. And manufacturers can "tune" processors for optimal performance in their systems. Systems with lots of cooling power can run longer on full turbo speed. Systems running on battery can be configured for a good balance of performance and battery life. And so on. And the TM-5900-24 is based on one of those 11th generation milestone processors. How does that benefit the TM-5900-24? Well, Teguar configured the processor so that system performance is the same whether the TM-5900-24 is plugged in or running on battery (we tested that, and it checked out). That makes sense. And it's different from a laptop or tablet where customers would value maximum battery life over maximum performance in the field.

The picture below illustrates how it all works: the graph shows the TM-5900-24's clock speed while it is running the PCMark 10 benchmark. Note how the frequency vacillates between 1550 and about 4400 MHz. The processor is programmed to not go faster then 4400 MHz under full load, and then fall to 1550 when full speed is not required. This provides both optimal performance as well as optimal economy while always staying within temperature limits.

There is, of course, ongoing progress in processor technology. While we do consider the "Tiger Lake" 11th generation a true milestone, Intel is now already on the 13th generation, with a new and different architecture that combines economy and higher performance processor cores in one chip. That's interesting and exciting, but it's not mandatory in industrial systems where it's primarily cost, reliability, maturity and longevity of a design that matters.

That said, high performance can matter, and especially so in systems with varying workloads. Medical All-in-Ones are such systems. Healthcare professionals may use them for all sorts of applications, both routine and demanding. To give you an overall idea of where the different types of processors used by Teguar in various products with various target applications stand in terms of performance, the table below shows the benchmark results of the TM-5900-24 as well as a number of other Teguar products we've tested over the past couple of years.

Teguar TM-5900-24 vs various Teguar products

Performance	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar	Teguar
Model	TM-5900-24	TM-5040-22	TP-5593-22	TP-3345-16	TB-3445	TRT-5280-12
Type	All-in-One PC	All-in-One PC	Panel PC	Panel PC	Industrial PC	Tablet PC
Year tested	2024	2022	2022	2021	2021	2021
Processor	Intel Core	Intel Core	Intel Core	Intel Pentium	Intel Celeron	Intel Core
Processor Model	i5-1135-G7	i5-6300	i3-7100	N4200	N3350	i7-8550
CPU base/turbo Speed	NA/4.20 GHz	2.40/3.00 GHz	2.40 GHz/no turbo	1.10/2.50 GHz	1.10/2.40 GHz	1.80/4.00 GHz
Cores/Threads	4/8	2/4	2/2	4/4	2/2	4/8
PassMark 6.1	4,008	2,298	1,960	1,336	1,211	3,042
PassMark 9	4,219	2,604	2,037	1,339	879	3,688
PC Mark 10	4,096	2,916	2,652	1,697	1,206	3,856
- PC Mark Essentials	8,364	6,704	6,119	4,214	3,478	7,991
- PC Mark Productivity	5,554	4,462	4,184	2,331	1,892	6,120
- PC Mark Digital Content	4,015	2,251	1,979	1,353	725	3,181
PC Mark Drive	530	870	840	731	NA	NA
3DMark Time Spy	1,046	376	384	189	NA	452
Geekbench 5 Single Core	1,355	795	598	318	323	1,080
Geekbench 5 Multi Core	4,118	1,213	5,253	1,155	609	3,429
Geekbench 5 Open CL	11,271	4,471	5,167	2,529	720	5,742
PCMark 10 Battery	3:34 hours	NA	NA	NA	NA	NA

What do the above benchmark testing results show? For one thing that the TM-5900-24 is quick and powerful, much more so than systems that primarily serve as data input, data lookup or process monitoring systems. And that kind of high performance is exactly what's needed in many medical applications and healthcare settings.

In general, the performance gap between Intel Core and Intel Pentium or Celeron branded processors is substantial. That does not disqualify the latter, it just means they are designed for less compute-intensive deployments. And keep in mind that SOME Pentium and Celeron processors actually use Intel Core technology and others use the lower-end Intel Atom technology.

Further keep in mind that the type of mass storage can have a substantial impact on overall systems performance. PCIe NVMe is almost always significantly faster than SATA, but even within those two classes there can be large performance differences.

Teguar TM-5900-24 medical All-in-One computer — Summary

With the TM-5900-24, Teguar offers a powerful 24-inch All-in-One medical computer specifically designed and configured for clinical and other healthcare settings. Easily mounted on medical carts (or other stationary and mobile locations), the system is small and light enough for easy deployment, but large and powerful enough for even complex tasks and applications.

Equipped with capacitive multi-touch, the TM-5900-24 offers a wealth of onboard connectivity, both state-of-the-art and legacy, all combined in a down-facing 4kV-isolated I/O block in the back of the unit. For mass storage, the 5900-24 supports both standard 2.5-inch SATA rotating or solid state media or M.2 storage modules. An optional battery backup offers up to two hours (we saw well over three hours) of operation unplugged — making for easy moving and relocation.

Fitting well into medical and clinical settings both in design and coloring, the TM-5900-24 combines robust internal steel and cast aluminum construction with a medical grade plastic back that has an anti-bacterial coating and can easily withstand spills, sprays and repeated wipe downs with cleaning chemicals.

Equipped with an Intel "Tiger Lake" 11th generation processor, Teguar claims the TM-5900-24 is the fastest medical grade computer with the latest 60601-1 4th Edition certification that incorporates 8KV and 15KV protection. That means the device will not interfere with other electronic equipment or allow interference from other electrical equipment to transfer to the devices or patient.

The TM-5900-24 can be ordered with RFID, a speaker box expansion module, and it comes with a 5mp webcam and two built-in microphones.

With its balance of weight, display size, connectivity, configurability and mounting options, the impressively engineered Teguar TM-5900-24 makes for a very attractive medical All-in-One computer for all sorts of healthcare settings. — Conrad H. Blickenstorfer, January 2024

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Teguar TM-5900-24 Medical All-in-One PC Specs

Added/changed	Full review 01/2024
Type	Medical All-In-One PC
Processor	Intel Core i5-1135-G7
Processor speed	Max 4.20 GHz Turbo Speed
TDP	12/28 watts
Thermal	Fanless passive cooling
OS	Windows 11, Windows 10 IoT, Windows 10 Professional
Graphics	Intel Iris Xe Graphics 620
Memory	4G to 32GB DDR4 SO-DIMM in two SO-DIMM sockets
Display type	LED-backlit TFT LCD with 220 nits luminance
Display size/res	23.8" 1920 x 1080 pixel (93 ppi)
Digitizer/Pens	Projected capacitive multi-touch
Keyboard	Optional
Storage	2.5-inch SATA hard drive or SSD and/or 128GB up to 1TB M.2 2280 SATA SSD
Multimedia Pocket	None
Expansion slots	1 x M.2 2280, 1 x mPCIe
Housing	Die-cast aluminum, steel, glass, plastic; anti-bacterial, anti-MRSA coating; VESA 100 mountable.
Temperature	32° to 104°F (0° to 32°C)
Humidity	Est: 20 to 90% non-condensing
Vibration	NA
Spill Resistance Class	IP65 (front bezel)
Chemical resistance spec	Approved cleaning agents: 3M HB Quat, Acetone, Actichlor, Alcohol, low concentration Ammonium Nitrate, Antigone, Betasept, Bleach, Caviwipes, Chloride, CIDEX, Control III Disinfectant Germicide, Dispatch Disinfectant Cleaner CLH69101, Incidin, Isopropyl Alcohol, LpH se, MikroBac, Mikrozid, Peridox, Puregreen 24 Disinfectant, SDW 70C, Sodium Hypochlorite, SporeClear, Trigene, Viraguard, Virkon, and Windex
Certifications	FCC Class B, IEC 60601-1 4th Edition, UL 60950, 60601-1 4th Edition
Size	22.9 x 13.78 x 1.7 inches (581 x 351 x 453 mm)
Weight	17.2 pounds (7.8 kg)
Power	Standard 100 to 240 Volt power adapter, DC 19V input, optional internal 10.8V/10,050mAh/108.5 watt-hour UPS ("up to 2 hours")
Data collection	Est: Available on request: expansion module with RFID, Smart Card reader, 1D/2D barcode scanner and magstripe reader
Camera	5MP webcam with aul built-in microphones
Communication	Wifi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac + Bluetooth 5.2
Interface	4 x USB 2.0, 4 x USB 3.0, 1 x COM, 2 x RJ45 gigabit LAN, 1 x HDMI, 1 x audio in and out, 2 x speakers
Price	Inquire
Web page	Teguar TM-5900-24 web
Product brochure	Teguar TM-5900-24 spec sheet (PDF)

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Teguar — 1-800-870-7715
www.teguar.com