After GAO investigators tested physical access controls at 10 FPS-guarded government buildings and managed to smuggle bomb parts into all of them, the security failure was directed mostly at the contract security officers. But this week Smiths Detection told Security Magazine it has reached a five-year agreement for critical infrastructure security systems.
Federal Protective Service (FPS), an operational division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), part of the Department of Homeland Security, chose Smiths Detection's sophisticated X-ray systems to help pinpoint any potential threat items.
The advanced X-ray systems will be used to screen employees' and visitors' personal bags and other belongings, as well as packages and deliveries before entering the building. These solutions enable the FPS to protect entry points, loading docks and other accessible areas. The systems will be delivered and installed over the course of the five-year program.
Cherif Rizkalla, president of Security and Inspection Division, Smiths Detection, said: "Federal Protective Service's mission to protect nearly 9,000 government buildings is a tremendous responsibility. We appreciate the confidence and support FPS has in our advanced X-ray systems. It is an honor to help protect these critical structures and the lives of everyone who uses them by providing our state-of-the-art technology."
