27 January 2003

Edgewood, MD - Smiths Detection has been selected as part of the Northrop Grumman team to fulfill a pre-production contract for 19 bio-agent detection systems (BDS) for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). This follows further development of a system already piloted by the USPS and is expected to lead to a multi-million dollar production contract in the near future. Nearly 300 sorting offices nationwide are expected to install the detection system that is designed to help protect postal employees from the threat of bioterrorism.

"Development and integration of an advanced detection system to protect postal service employees has been a considerable achievement," commented John Ferrie, Group Managing Director of Smiths Aerospace. "We now look forward to playing a key role in the team that will take this project through to completion."

This contract requires the installation and testing of systems at 14 USPS facilities, enabling the postal service to validate performance of the final design, which resulted from the pilot program completed earlier this year. The BDS collects and analyzes air samples from mail-sorting systems, using polymerase chain reaction technology to detect trace amounts of DNA from anthrax spores and other biological agents.