Smiths Detection2007-09-14 15:12:16
Smiths Detection wins MOD contract to develop advanced technology for future generation chemical agent detectors
Smiths has been awarded a £1.2 million research contract by the UK Ministry of Defence for HiFAWS, a new technology that shows promise for a new generation of small, low-cost chemical agent detectors suited to a variety of applications.
In conjunction with Dstl, the MOD science and technology agency, Smiths Detection will manage a programme to evaluate the most suitable approach to the use of the HiFAWS technology. The objective is to create a system capable of identifying a growing range of detectable materials, at higher sensitivities and with near zero false alarms, packaged in a form suitable for operational military use.
Damian Tracey, Managing Director of Smiths Detection - Military, said: “This programme offers the potential for a significant leap in capability for the MOD, by developing the technology base for chemical agent detection”.
“Of the new technologies in the field, Smiths Detection considers that HiFAWS offers great potential to advance our world-leading core detection technology significantly.”
HiFAWS is High Field Asymmetric Waveform Spectrometry, an ion separation technology that Smiths Detection has been evaluating over several years. The two-phase development programme, leading to an advanced prototype built for validation by Dstl and Defence Equipment and Support, the executive agent of the MoD, will be completed within three years.
The MOD and Dstl sought industry engagement to assess the best technical options and take these through to a technology demonstrator programme. The experience of Smiths Detection as a global supplier of chemical agent detectors and systems, teaming with Sionex Corporation, was chosen under competition for this programme. Together, they will exploit the technology to create options for product designs fit for operational use. Sionex based in Bedford, Massachusetts, commercializes breakthrough technologies in chemical and biological sensor chips and systems
Smiths has been awarded a £1.2 million research contract by the UK Ministry of Defence for HiFAWS, a new technology that shows promise for a new generation of small, low-cost chemical agent detectors suited to a variety of applications.
In conjunction with Dstl, the MOD science and technology agency, Smiths Detection will manage a programme to evaluate the most suitable approach to the use of the HiFAWS technology. The objective is to create a system capable of identifying a growing range of detectable materials, at higher sensitivities and with near zero false alarms, packaged in a form suitable for operational military use.
Damian Tracey, Managing Director of Smiths Detection - Military, said: “This programme offers the potential for a significant leap in capability for the MOD, by developing the technology base for chemical agent detection”.
“Of the new technologies in the field, Smiths Detection considers that HiFAWS offers great potential to advance our world-leading core detection technology significantly.”
HiFAWS is High Field Asymmetric Waveform Spectrometry, an ion separation technology that Smiths Detection has been evaluating over several years. The two-phase development programme, leading to an advanced prototype built for validation by Dstl and Defence Equipment and Support, the executive agent of the MoD, will be completed within three years.
The MOD and Dstl sought industry engagement to assess the best technical options and take these through to a technology demonstrator programme. The experience of Smiths Detection as a global supplier of chemical agent detectors and systems, teaming with Sionex Corporation, was chosen under competition for this programme. Together, they will exploit the technology to create options for product designs fit for operational use. Sionex based in Bedford, Massachusetts, commercializes breakthrough technologies in chemical and biological sensor chips and systems
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