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X-ray equipment to detect dangerous and illegal shipments in cargo containers transported to the U.S. will be built in Alcoa under a new $10.6 million U.S. government contract.

Smiths Detection, based in Pine Brook, N.J., confirmed Friday the company will provide mobile, high-energy cargo screeners for deployment across the country to inspect inbound and outbound shipping containers and trucks.

The company manufactures screening systems used for cargo and product inspection at its facility on Regal Drive in Alcoa.

HCV Mobile inspection vehicles use high-energy X-ray scanning designed to optimize security checks at ports, airports and border crossings. The systems are used to inspect trucks, containers and other vehicles for contraband, weapons, explosives and narcotics.

“It’s a device that’s been around for about four years that we’ve been producing out of our Alcoa plant. X-ray scanning devices are really an area of excellence at Alcoa,” said David Olsen, spokesman for Smiths Detection.

“One of the great things about it is that it can travel on American highways, so if it is needed in an area where there are a lot of containers, they can move it there.”
The name of the agency that contracted for the purchase is not being released, but the mobile detection vehicles focus on security at ports and border crossings, according to Olsen.

The Department of Homeland Security is charged with securing America’s borders. Its Customs and Border Protection component has a priority mission of keeping terrorists and their weapons out of the United States. Customs and Border Protection also enforces immigration and drug laws.

“This contract underlines the superiority of our mobile, high-energy X-ray solutions built at our Alcoa facility,” Stephen Phipson, president of Smiths Detection, said in a statement.

“These advanced, highly reliable detection systems produce best-in-class imaging resolution, critical in assisting the rapid identification of potentially life-threatening or illegal shipments.”

Smiths Detection offers advanced security solutions in civil and military markets worldwide, developing and manufacturing government-regulated technology products that identify explosives, chemical and biological agents, weapons and contraband.