Atlanta-based ScanTech Holdings, LLC, a manufacturer of sophisticated X-ray security inspection systems and a member company of Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), has been voted the national winner of the first Defend America Challenge, a national homeland security technology business plan competition sponsored by the Chesapeake Innovation Center (CIC) in Annapolis, Maryland.
ScanTech, one of six finalists from across the country to present innovative business plans before a panel of eight judges as part of the national competition, was awarded $50,000. Judging criteria included market need, intellectual property, business viability and presentation. The company’s business plan was originally selected from more than 50 nationwide by CIC.
“We have developed a leading-edge technology that will have a critical impact on the war on terrorism,” said Dolan Falconer, president and CEO of ScanTech. “Our ability to detect and identify substances such as nuclear materials, liquid and solid explosives and hazardous chemicals that may be hidden inside of baggage or cargo containers will be a vital component in improving security. Winning this competition further validates the importance of our technological innovation and advancement in the non-intrusive security inspection field. Our entire team is honored to win the first Defend America Challenge national award, and we applaud the efforts of CIC to identify and promote innovative homeland security technologies.”
ScanTech was founded shortly after Sept. 11, 2001 by five seasoned nuclear and security experts who saw a worldwide need for new technologies for non-intrusive detection of contraband such as nuclear weapons, explosives and other implements of terror. The company has commercialized a variety of advanced X-ray inspection products including systems designed for checkpoints, airport baggage, air cargo, packages and parcels, pallets and large cargo containers.
“ScanTech’s competitive advantage lies in its proprietary and patented advanced dual energy X-ray material discrimination technology,” Falconer explained. “Current airport screening and cargo inspection systems use one X-ray source that permits operators to see shapes only. ScanTech’s technology, on the other hand, allows the system to determine an object’s density and atomic weight, as well as to reveal its contents.”
ScanTech, headquartered in Atlanta at the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) at Georgia Tech, also maintains manufacturing operations in Buford, Ga.
“We are proud that a technology company in our program has been identified as having the best homeland security technology in the country,” said Tony Antoniades, general manager of the ATDC and director of the Entrepreneur Services Division of Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute. “It is very fulfilling to work with a company that is going to save lives around the world.”
The event was organized by the Chesapeake Innovation Center (CIC), a business accelerator located in Annapolis, MD.
“The Defend America Challenge event brought together a terrific group of innovative entrepreneurs and high level homeland security representatives,” said Laura Neuman, CIC interim executive director. “Our mission is to bridge the gap between innovation in technology and the homeland security marketplace and this event helped us meet that mission. We hope to make the Defend America Challenge an annual event.”
About the Chesapeake Innovation Center: CIC, located in the “informatics corridor” of Anne Arundel County, Md., is a business accelerator that focuses the power of entrepreneurship on America’s national security requirements. By creating a bridge between major users of security technology and small companies at the forefront of innovation, the CIC, its partners and member companies are able to offer significant advancements in the areas of informatics, energy, physical and cyber security technologies.
Enterprise Innovation Institute
Georgia Institute of Technology
75 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 314
Atlanta, Georgia 30308 USA
Media Relations Contact: John Toon (404-894-6986); E-mail: (john.toon@innovate.gatech.edu).
Technical Contact: Dolan Falconer, ScanTech Holdings, LLC, (404-526-6220); E-mail: (dfalconer@scantechholdings.com)