The Contract for the Electronic Tanker Lock project has been executed
Date:
August 10, 2010
The contamination of bulk food poses a high consequence health threat to our society. Additionally, minimal security safeguards have been developed for bulk liquid food transport. The current methods of transporting bulk liquid food are vulnerable to unauthorized access and are reliant upon paper intensive records that are prone to errors. The bulk liquid food transportation sector needs a security enhancement that will reduce recording errors, improve the efficiency of record keeping and enable normal transport activities to be secured. Dr. Fred Payne with the University of Kentucky is developing and demonstrating an electronic lock system on a bulk liquid food tanker. A Milk Transport Security System was developed and optimized to a pre-commercial state under another DHS project. The modular structure of the technologies utilized in that system allows the system to be adapted for providing an Electronic Tanker Lock System for the bulk liquid food, chemical transport industry and potentially for securing pharmaceuticals and medical supplies.
In the photo below, Dr. Fred Payne with the University of Kentucky
The Challenge
The task of assuring the security of our homeland involves protecting the citizens of the United States, the nation's critical infrastructure and key assets. This is necessary to sustain the nation's vitality against terrorism and other threats. This protection must originate at the community level. It requires discovering, developing and deploying new technology that will support first responders and key decision makers in local communities.
The Mission
NIHS' mission is to discover, develop and deploy solutions that protect and preserve the critical infrastructure of the nation's communities.
The Institute
NIHS aligns projects and research objectives with the needs and requirements of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The strategy is to manage a distributed research enterprise that effectively transitions research and development into solutions. NIHS works with DHS to determine technology needs at the community level. Then, teams are quickly assembled from multiple universities to develop solutions to the needs.
The Strategy
Through management of the Kentucky Critical Infrastructure Protections Program (KCI), the National Institute for Hometown Security (NIHS) provides an ongoing, integrated program dedicated to developing new technologies and devices. NIHS works through qualified academic institutions to accomplish the technological objectives.
