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NEWS RELEASE: Arcom Article

http://www.businessweekly.co.uk/news/view_article.asp?article_id=9680

Cambridge technology is being used in a pioneering GPS tracking device that could prove a significant weapon for fighting organised crime and terrorism in a range of environments from seaports to military bases and stop theft, vandalism and sabotage in retail outlets and schools.

Arcom in Cambridge and Homeland Integrated Security Systems Inc in North Carolina are set for a worldwide commercial windfall after developing the Cyber Tracker V.1.

They are ready to start manufacturing and deliver product in the fourth quarter of this year.

Arcom, a supplier of ind-ustrial embedded computer and communications processors, has produced the underlying hardware for the tracker – a portable detection device designed to provide real-time GPS tracking of vehicles, people or other mobile or movable objects.

Its rugged design makes it suitable in a variety of situations where it is necessary to know an exact location of a person or object. It features ‘push to talk’ ability and an extended battery life.

The Cyber Tracker is being marketed to the military and public safety sectors as well as consumer retail, school systems, ports and fleet management. Another key target market is the 361 commercial seaports in the US, which are vulnerable to criminal penetration.

A blanket purchase order from Pro.Sec, a Middle Eastern security company, for 5,000 Cyber Trackers, has already been received. The order translates to $2.5 million for the hardware, which does not include subsequent fees for the software and service.

Shipments start in the fourth quarter.

The US homeland security market is another prime hit. Homeland Integrated Security Systems has recruited Barry Bennett, a former President Bush adviser, to lead its governmental sales division.

Ian Riley, CTO of Homeland Integrated Security Systems said: “It is an industry-changing device that will take GPS to new levels.”

Riley and Homeland Integrated Security Systems CEO Frank Moody visited Arcom’s Cambridge base this week to plot strategy following early payback from getting a prototype in front of potential international customers.

They are looking at Arcom as a long-term partner and say that if Cambridge proves fertile territory not only for R & D but also in identifying potential new business, the company would consider taking local premises, as has been the case elsewhere in America and Asia.

Arcom has operations in Cambridge and in Kansas City and Homeland Integrated Security Systems was recommended to talk to the business by a mutual customer. A relationship started just eight months ago and has blossomed.

Riley said: “Arcom’s expert views on how the product could develop and its technological know-how have really impressed us and have been crucial in the development of the tracker.”

The tracker has been under development for more than two years and the prototype has been brought in for under $2m. Potential markets were identified for the product at an early stage of R & D and it was felt essential to get a prototype under the noses of prospective customers much earlier than would normally be the case – hence the swift success with the Pro.Sec order.

Moody said that while the war against terrorism was an obvious market for Cyber Tracker, crime-busting applications of the technology might prove equally lucrative.

“You read about people getting blown up through acts of terrorism but there is a lot of chaos caused in America and other countries by organised gangs trying to steal goods and assets and our technology can address these markets.

“There are some vast seaports in America where truck and people movement can go unnoticed. The Port of Savannah in Georgia, for example, is 1800 acres and has between 7,000 and 8,000 truck movements a day.

“There are 37 points of entry and they just turn trucks loose on this expanse of land without ever knowing how many lorries are on site at any given time or the precise location. Before 9/11 that wouldn’t have been a concern but it is now.”

Moody acknowledged that it was vital for the company and Arcom to maintain a focus in terms of potential applications for the technology.

He said homeland defence in the US was a priority market, followed by seaport security and protection of assets in Middle Eastern countries.

And Arcom was in prime position to partner Homeland Integrated Security Systems over the long haul, he emphasised.

Upscaling in terms of staff and premises looks inevitable as the partnership blooms.