Bloomberg News December 27, 2001
Sawset, Other Chemical Sensor Makers See Gains in Terror Plan
By Alex Canizares and Jonathan Berr
Washington, Dec. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Sawset Co.'s Microsensor Systems Inc. and Smith Group Plc's Barringer Technologies Inc. are among the companies that may benefit from a plan to install chemical detectors in U.S. subway systems. The U.S. Department of Energy, which has been working on a program to provide an early alert if terrorists release toxic chemicals in crowded mass transit stations, is starting a pilot program with two Washington Metro stations. The chemical-sniffing sensors in the Washington program were produced by Microsensor, a 15-year old closely held company based in Apopka, Florida, and sold for $15,000 to $25,000 each. ``I believe it's going to be a robust and significant market,'' said Microsensor President Norm Davis. There has been ``a lot of interest'' in Microsensor products since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, he said.
Chicago, Atlanta and Boston transit systems want to test similar sensors, and companies that already sell such devices to the U.S. military and fire and police departments are preparing for a bigger market. These include London-based Smiths Group Plc's Barringer Technologies Inc., closely held Centech Group of Fairfax, Virginia, and closely held Mikkeli, Finland-based Environics Oy, according to Anthony Policastro, the engineer overseeing the Washington Metro project.
Market Potential
Washington officials won't say when or where the test sensors will be installed, citing security issues. If the tests prove successful, officials will move to expand the program. ``What Washington Metro is doing is phenomenal because they are paving the way for the industry,'' said Annabelle Boyd, a consultant with Charlottesville, Virginia-based BCG Transportation Group Inc., which advises federal agencies on security threats in transit systems.
It may take three to five years for the market to reach its potential because equipping a city's subway system with such devices will cost ``tens of millions of dollars.'' Boyd said The Centech Group, now primarily a U.S. military contractor, hopes to sell subways a variety of chemical-detecting products, including portable hand-held devices at $19,000 each, devices to be attached to tunnels or station walls at $30,000 each; and heavy- duty devices costing $70,000 that can withstand snowstorms. ``We're trying to work with the D.C. metro, the Chicago Metro, and the Atlanta metro,'' said John Parkinson, a program director at Centech. Contracts with Chicago and Atlanta could be worth $2 million and $750,000, respectively, he said.
Remembering Tokyo
The U.S. began working on chemical sensors for subways in 1995, when a sarin gas attack in a Tokyo subway station killed 13 people and injured 5,000 others. An Energy Department study on readiness released 18 months ago said U.S. transit systems aren't prepared to detect or respond to an attack involving chemical or biological weapons. The report recommended putting chemical sensors in four subway systems across the country by 2004.
``It's a lot easier to use chemical weapons in a closed system like a subway, said John Pike of Globalsecurity.org, a defense policy group based in Alexandria, Virginia. ``That's the standard scenario that people worry about.'' Parkinson said subways alone represent a small market because they involve one-time sales. A larger market depends on whether devices can be made and sold in other public spaces such as stadiums and airports. ``It's potentially huge,'' Microsensor's Davis said. ``A lot of people have called (asking) `what's out there?' `what's doable? '''
General Dynamics
Larger companies have also seen an increase in interest since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centers and the Pentagon, according to General Dynamics Corp. spokesman Kendell Pease. General Dynamics, the fifth-largest defense contractor, has developed a remote-control device to detect chemical and biological agents, which has attracted the interest of the Post Office and the Office of Homeland defense, he said. Most of the technology is still in the testing stage. The Massachusetts Bay Area Transit Authority, which is participating in the Energy Department's project, is testing sensors that detect biological agents in one downtown Boston station. The devices, provided by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Lincoln Laboratory, alert authorities to anthrax and smallpox, among others.
The Boston transit system is set to buy chemical detectors, spokeswoman Lydia Rivera said. ``Our next step is to allocate the funds to purchase the hardware,'' she said. Tom Kelly, New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman, said ``there is no technology that we have not looked at or will not be looking at to ensure the safety of the public and our passengers.''
© Copyright 2001 Bloomberg News
