OSI Systems to develop advanced cargo screening system

Published 16 March 2011

Rapiscan Systems, the security division of OSI Systems, Inc., was recently awarded a $29 million contract with DHS’ Science and Technology Directorate to develop sophisticated new cargo screening systems; the program is designed to produce the next generation of non-intrusive cargo screening systems that will be capable of automatically detecting and identifying multiple threats and contraband including explosives, narcotics, and chemical weapons in cargo containers entering the United States by air, land, and sea.

Rapiscan Systems, the security division of OSI Systems, Inc., was recently awarded a $29 million contract with DHS’ Science and Technology Directorate to develop sophisticated new cargo screening systems.

Rapiscan will develop two separate systems for the CanScan Program which combines multiple threat detection technologies along with advanced detection software.

The program is designed to produce the next generation of non-intrusive cargo screening systems. The new technologies must be capable of automatically detecting and identifying multiple threats and contraband including explosives, narcotics, and chemical weapons in cargo containers entering the United States by air, land, and sea.

Ajay Mehra, the president of Rapiscan Systems, said that the new systems “will leverage the unique combination of our team’s experience and capability in high-energy x-ray imaging and developing critical inspection solutions. These systems along with the automatic detection algorithms are expected to have threat detection and identification capabilities that are significantly better than the current state of the art systems.”

Rapiscan had previously been awarded $3.6 million to develop a prototype in the first phase of this competitive contract.

The $29 million deal was announced just days after Rapiscan had been named the exclusive supplier of security screening solutions at the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games. The contract was worth $31 million.

Rapiscan is headquartered in California and operates facilities in countries around the world including India, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom. The company specializes in scanning technologies for packages, baggage, and cargo.