The US Department of Homeland Security said on Wednesday it awarded $1.35 billion in contracts to three companies to develop a system to screen for radioactive matter that might be hidden in cargo.
The Cargo Advanced Automated Radiography System (CAARS) will be used at ports and border crossing areas. Officials said it will be more effective than current systems because it can identify high density shielding - like lead or carbon-based products - used to mask nuclear materials such as uranium or weapons grade plutonium.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has said that the biggest threat to the country is a weapon of mass destruction, like a nuclear or radiological device.
Winners of the seven-year contracts, which include two years of research and development and five years for production, were L-3 Communications Holdings Inc, American Science & Engineering Inc and employee-owned SAIC.
The companies will initially have $50 million to develop prototypes of an advanced imaging system. After the prototypes are tested, Homeland Security will decide how to award the remaining $1.3 billion for the production of about 300 systems. It might go to one or to all three companies depending on the systems and how they might be used, said Vayl Oxford, director of the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office.
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