18 Jun 07. BAE Systems has received SAFETY Act designation from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for its JETEYE™ aircraft missile defense system. The system was developed to protect commercial airliners against infrared-guided missiles. The SAFETY (Support Anti-terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies) Act encourages the development and rapid deployment of anti-terrorism technologies by giving sellers of qualified technologies liability protection from lawsuits. During the 18-month Phase III program, JETEYE will continue flying on the world’s largest airline, American Airlines, and also will fly on an ABX Air cargo aircraft. The continuing development aims to reduce the potential cost to the airline industry by streamlining system installation, reducing aerodynamic drag, and improving reliability and maintainability.
20 Jun 07. Rontal Applications, Ltd. announced an extension of SimGuard’s crowd behavior prediction module. SimGuard is Rontal’s revolutionary incident management and business continuity system, which merges the real and virtual worlds for maximum security and control. The new extension further enhances SimGuard’s Crowd-behavior Scenarios Database (CDB) and improves the system’s ability to predict crowd behavior during evacuation for planning and training purposes, as well as command and control in real time emergency situations. The system displays animated virtual crowd in a virtual evacuation, for better decision-making. The extended module enhances the ability to locate, in advance, potential bottlenecks during evacuation, when every second counts and blocked escape ways or doors can result in a catastrophe, due to human panic or disorder. The extended module calculates possible damages to pre-planned evacuation routes, due to the impact of hazardous factors, such as a bomb, fire, smoke, gas leak, etc.
21 Jun 07. FLIR Systems, Inc. has been awarded a contract from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for Ranger IIITM multi-sensor systems valued at $6.0 million. The systems will be installed along the southern U.S. border as upgrades to older thermal imaging systems. This order represents the largest single order from CBP that FLIR has won to date. Systems will be manufactured in FLIR’s facility in Billerica, MA, and deliveries will take place in the third quarter of 2007.
21 Jun 07. The first leg of the government’s multibillion-dollar plan to build a high-tech fence along the nation’s southern border to reduce illegal entry has been delayed without explanation. Officials from the Department of Homeland Security and lead contractor Boeing Co. on June 7 updated lawmakers about the initial phase of the program that includes nine towers being used to create a “virtual fence” stretching along a 28-mile segment of the Arizona-Mexico border bracketing the Sasabe, Ariz., port of entry. No one mentioned expected problems or delays of so-called Project 28, but the next day DHS officials called congressional aides to say the project would be held up a week due to radar problems. Those details were included in a letter sent Tuesday to DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff by House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., chair of subcommittee that held the hearing. “It is unacceptable that the department chose to disclose this information via telephone to committee staff, rather than providing a thorough assessment of the project’s status directly to committee embers at the hearing,” according to the letter. (Source: AP)