Maritime and Ports

Industry heavyweights come out for NAIS briefing
Nationwide Automatic Identification System contract may eventually be worth as much as $165 million, but executives suspect that the project will lead into work on the Command 2010 project; Boeing, L-3, SAIC, and others attend a briefing
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Navy to deploy dolphins and sea lions to Washington naval base
Puget Sound gets ready to accept a flotilla of marine mammals; dolphins use sonar to swiftly locate maritime intruders; versitile sea lions capture them with a rope; military hopes to eventually replace them with machines
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Senate to clash with House over container 100% inspection provision
The House voted to mandate 100% inspection of U.S.-bound frieght containers; a Senate panel agrees with the Bush administration that the measure would be too costly
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Boeing wins $11 million UUV refurbishment and testing contract
Industry heavyweight will give the AN/BLQ-11 Long-term Mine Reconnaissance System a thorough going-over; system capable of twelve hours of autonomous reconnaissance before docking itself through the torpedo tube; testing to begin at Puget Sound and Bahamas
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Deepwater under continued fire
Henry Waxman charges Coast Guard with misleading DHS auditors and vows to get to the bottom of it; an independent DoD assessment finds the Deepwater project in trouble and wonders in Lockheed and Northrop should be stripped of their favored position; opportunities beckon for others
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Industry criticizes DHS for short-chaning port security
Maritime- and port-related industries criticize DHS for continuing to give a disproportionately large slice of federal security funding to aviation security, while being unreasonably frugal when it comes to port security
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India announces coast guard expansion plan
Country will buy fifteen new ships and twenty-three more aircraft, including UAVs; coast guard looks for deep water capabilities capable of assisting with coastal counter-terror missions
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GE and partners release upgraded version of container safety product
While Congress debates the 100 percent insepction of U.S.-bound cargo containers, GE and its global partners are offering Version 3.0 of their CommerceGuard’s container security system
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UPDATE: National Security Cutter marred by fatigue cracks
DHS says Coast Guard failed properly to oversee the $24 billion project; Deepwater program comes under increasing scrutiny; costs double while sea life decreases 20 percent; safety issues observed three years ago
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Coda Octopus announces new Underwater Inspection System
Device creates real-time 3D images of subsea objects; port security the primary market for this intriguing new sonar product; company already known for its oil exploration-enhancing echoscope; government delivery pending
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Reliability continues to plague TWIC
Lockheed wins a major $70 million contract, but low bidding may hide quality issues; “bait and switch” says one critic; cards said to suffer 50 percent error rates with unacceptable processing times; flimsy card stock at issue
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Update: Littoral failure upsets Lockheed subcontractors
Nineteen companies to be affected by production stoppage, including five in the D.C. area alone; Argon ST, BAE Systems, EADS, Angle, and Terma face the future with gloom; fortunately, only one ship out of four is effected
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Littoral combat ship comes under heavy budgetary fire
Lockheed Martin’s effort has increased in cost 87 percent, while General Dynamics sees soaring costs as well; Navy officials decide on a temporary halt while a review gets under way
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Coast Guard ready for maritime communications solicitations
International automatic identification system equipment will be used to form an overarching view of maritime traffic within or near the U.S.; Phase two contracting set to begin for reception and communications set-up; project worth a total of $165 million
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Terrorism threat sparks a labor market for underwater detectives
Grant from DHS launches a minor in underwater crime scene investigation at Florida State University; SCUBA diving, rules of evidence, among the coursework in this unusual discipline; investigations move beyond mere recovery of bodies
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