RIDGEFIELD, Conn., 20 January 2005. Markland Technologies, Inc. announced today that it has recently completed repairs and improvements to the Secure Electronic Network for Travelers' Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) system located in San Ysidro, Calif.
Less than 20 miles south of downtown San Diego, Calif. is the world's busiest port of entry; the international border crossing between San Ysidro, Calif. and Tijuana, Mexico. On the average day over 40,000 vehicles pass through this location.
The SENTRI system installed at San Ysidro allows pre-screened vehicles and low-risk travelers from Mexico to be processed in an expeditious manner through dedicated travel lanes.
Recent work performed here by Markland's wholly owned subsidiary Ergo Systems for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP) included the installation of new roadway embedded sensors, tire shredders and exit gates. These repairs and improvements improved both the security and traffic flow of vehicular traffic entering the United States from Mexico.
Markland's subsidiary Ergo Systems has been performing security logistics support services for the CBP for over 4 years. Ergo Systems is also a subcontractor to a team led by Accenture Ltd. which was awarded a U.S. government security contract on June 1, 2004 which may eventually be worth up to $10 billion to the team members to track foreign visitors by the use of digital photographs, fingerprints, or other biometric information as part of the Department of Homeland Security's US-VISIT program.
The US-VISIT program, which stands for U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology, is an ambitious program to secure U.S. borders. The winning team led by Accenture Ltd. consists of almost 30 other government contractors.
"We are proud of our past efforts to secure the U.S. border, and look forward to our participation on the US-VISIT program as a subcontractor," said Robert Tarini, chairman and CEO of Markland. "Additionally we are very pleased to have been selected to work with some of the most advanced technology development companies in the U.S. on the US-VISIT project."
Markland Technologies, Inc. is committed to setting next-generation standards in defense and security through the provision of innovative emerging technologies and expert services. The company is engaged in the identification of advanced technologies currently under development in laboratories, universities and in private industry, and in the transformation of those technologies into next-generation products.
Markland's solutions support military, law enforcement and homeland security personnel to protect the nation's citizens, borders and critical infrastructure assets from the threat of terrorism and other dangers. Through strategic development, Markland focuses on the creation of dual-use technology and products with applications in both the defense market and civilian homeland security and law enforcement fields. For more information, see www.marklandtech.com.
