X-Ray systems developer and manufacturer Astrophysics is eyeing the next major replacement cycle by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) of Advanced Technology (AT) X-Ray systems to enter the aviation security checkpoint market in the U.S., company officials tell HSR.
Most of the current AT X-Ray systems deployed by TSA at U.S. airport checkpoints were purchased beginning in March 2008 with upgraded systems called AT-2 acquired beginning in 2010. The AT systems have an expected seven to 10 year life-cycle and combined with a constrained federal spending environment the agency is likely to begin the Request for Proposal process in the next two to three years for the next-generation of AT systems, says Mark Laustra, vice president of Sales and Government Programs for Astrophysics in the U.S. and the Americas.
“We are developing an R&D (research and development) path to be ready for that activity,” Laustra says.
The system Astrophysics will likely offer for any TSA competition will be the VI7, which contains just one generator that produces seven views of the contents of a bag, providing a near-3D rendering to better identify potential threats.
The company has to develop the algorithms to enable the automatic detection of explosives and liquids inside a bag to be ready for a future AT competition, Laustra says. That many views will provide screeners with more information than the current dual view AT systems TSA uses, he says.
TSA has purchased AT X-Ray systems from OSI Systems [OSIS] Rapiscan Systems division and Smiths Detection. The agency has a few dozen systems from L-3 Communications [LLL] as well.
Astrophysics, which is based in California, generates the vast majority of its revenues through sales to international customers. The company generates more than 80 percent of its sales through exports and the America’s, including the U.S., accounts for 15 percent of the business, some of which is exports.
Laustra would like to get the U.S. business to between 30 to 40 percent of overall revenues and the Americas, including the U.S., to 50 percent.
To grow the Americas’ business, Laustra identified several areas for additional business, including replacement systems for facilities like jails, court houses and mail rooms, air cargo in Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean, and replacement systems for international customs and airports.
“Air cargo outside the U.S. is pretty hot right now as many governments are complying with TSA’s 100 percent screening cargo mandate,” he says.
Astrophysics has 19 X-Ray systems on TSA’s qualified product list that companies in the air cargo business can purchase from.
Astrophysics is developing a computed-tomography-based cargo screener called the Multi-View Computed Tomography Capable (MVCTC) air cargo pallet inspection system that it eventually hopes to introduce to the air cargo market. The system is being developed with a combination of internal R&D funds and funding from the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate.
Laustra said development of the MVCTC is progressing nicely, adding that a recent algorithm development meeting showed the company is farther along than “anyone anticipated.”
The MVCTC will be able to generate seven views of palletized cargo and also rotate the cargo to generate further views, allowing operators to identify potential threats without having to break down the pallet. The system is also being designed to screen mixed cargo pallets versus the homogenized cargo currently screened by X-Ray pallet screeners.
With the CT capability “we can virtually unpack the pallet to look at smaller sections,” says Luke Olsen, federal sales account manager with Astrophysics. The system provides density measurements to allow for material detection of explosives, he adds. Another goal of the MVCTC is to provide automatic alerts for explosive threats, he says.
Astrophysics was founded in 2002 and currently has about 140 employees. Laustra says that one of the company’s strengths is its ability to quickly turn orders around for delivery, typically between one and three weeks versus four to six weeks for its competitors.
Laustra says that the past two years Astrophysics has achieved 20 percent growth annually.