Ahura’s FirstDefender receives industrial design award
When companies design a homeland security piece of equipment, they typically put most, if not all, of their emphasis on the device’s effectiveness; still, a chemical detection device wins a prestigious design prize
Congratulations, Ahura: The Wilmington, Massachusetts-based company’s FirstDefender Handheld Chemical Identification System has received a 2006 Industrial Design Excellence Award (IDEA). FirstDefender is a rugged hand-held devices used to identify unknown liquids and solids. It is used by military and first responders in several countries to identify chemical weapons, explosives, toxic substances, hazardous waste, and narcotics.
The hand-held uses Ahura’s patented optical engine Raman spectroscopy. It was designed by Somerville, Massachusetts-based Altitude, a product design and development company.