Technest Provides Status Update On Remote Standoff Chemical Agent And Explosives Detection Sensor Development Program
$1M in Government and Corporate R/D Capital Expended to Date Has Produced a Powerful Remote Standoff Sensor Design
Boston - Technest Holdings, Inc., a defense and homeland security company which is transforming advanced laboratory technology into real-world products, announced today a status update on its ongoing Automated Adaptive Chemical Exploitation System (AACES) remote sensor research and development effort. This research and development program is a funded Phase II U.S. Army SBIR, and has been undertaken by its wholly owned subsidiary EOIR Technologies Inc. in cooperation with the US Army Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD).
The AACES passively detects vapor based anomalies that arise from infrared-active chemicals in the air. The remote standoff detection sensor maps out anomalous detections within a 10(degree) x 14(degree) field of view with 1.5(degree) precision. On-board algorithms enable rapid reporting of detection of a host of chemical agents which can be found in chemical and explosive weapons. While the technology is advanced, the sensor is designed for easy use and interpretation. The AACES has the potential to enhance military and Homeland Security protection against a host of chemical and explosive threats which create airborne vapor signatures as well as facilitate battlefield tactics during the suspected use of chemical warfare agents. The AACES will also prove critical for the safety of first-response teams during disasters, as well as for determining safe escape routes for disaster victims. Earlier versions of this technology were used by the company in the days immediately following 9/11 to provide detection of dangerous chemical plumes found in the World Trade Center disaster site via airborne surveillance sensing.
The AACES has been tested in both laboratory and field environments at several stages of its research and development. AACES sensor test sites have included the US Army's Ft. A.P. Hill and Dugway Proving grounds, where chemical warfare agent simulant releases and detonations have been monitored. As the final stages of prototype development draw to a close, additional field tests will occur at both the US Army's Ft. Belvoir and Ft. A.P Hill.
Upon completion of commercial product development the company expects to have significant opportunities to sell the sensors to military and government intelligence agencies as well as to all segments of the Homeland Security marketplace. The AACES is projected to sell at a price of about $250,000 per unit.
Technest wholly owned subsidiary EOIR Technologies receives significant annual funding under an NVESD omnibus contract. The omnibus contract Option Year Four was awarded on July 15, 2005. Since that date EOIR Technologies Inc. omnibus contract awards have totaled over $29.0 million. As of November 30, 2005 EOIR Technologies Inc. had funded backlog of $55.2M.
The ongoing Omnibus contract may provide a maximum ceiling amount of up to $80 million in fiscal year revenues. Many of the products and services being delivered on this contract utilize next-generation electro-optic and infrared sensor technologies that are being used in direct support of U.S. military combat operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. The Army's NVESD has been responsible for numerous key innovations in the fields of optical electronics and thermal imaging for weapons targeting, electronic surveillance and other mission-critical military applications.
EOIR Technologies, Inc. has been providing innovative sensor engineering products and services to customers within the Department of Defense for nearly twenty five years.
SOURCE: Technest Holdings