Alion Science and Technology has secured a multi-million dollar contract to help the US Department of Defense (DoD) defeat emerging improvised explosive device (IED) threats.
Under the terms of the $17.7m agreement, the company will support the conception, prototyping and improvement of technologies, devices and systems.
Alion will also boost soldiers’ situational awareness, enabling them to better identify, defeat and bypass explosive threats.
Alion senior vice-president and distributed simulation group manager Terri Spoonhour said the contract will enable the DoD to detect and neutralise explosive hazards, wherever US forces are deployed.
"This will ultimately save lives and ensure our units accomplish their critical missions," Spoonhour said.
Additional details of the contract, including the performance period, remain undisclosed.
Alion operates the Weapons Systems Technology Information Analysis Center (WSTIAC), which is one of the nine DoD Information Analysis Centers (IACs) sponsored by the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC), headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, US.
The DoD develops systems and technologies for military applications that detect and neutralise mines, mine fields and unexploded ordnance.
The development of technology focuses on personnel protection, handheld detectors, wide-area detection, mechanical clearance, vegetation clearance and mine awareness.
Image: US Army personnel encounter a vehicle-borne IED during training at Fort Irwin, California, US. Photo: courtesy of Donna Miles.
