Stratech partners Itochu to penetrate Japan market
ConvergenceAsia staff
27/01/2010

Singapore Exchange Mainboard-listed Stratech Systems has announced a strategic alliance with Itochu Singapore to market Stratech’s iFerret intelligent Airfield/Runway Surveillance and Foreign Object and Debris (FOD) Detection System in Japan.

Under the agreement, Itochu will market, sell and deploy, support iFerret at Japan Self Defense Force airbases as well as targeted commercial airports in Japan. Itochu is one of the largest global trading companies in Japan.

“Itochu’s strong foothold in Japan offers Stratech tremendous leverage in penetrating the market for Battle Damage Assessment and FOD Detection Systems,” said Dr David KM Chew, Executive Chairman of Stratech.

Besides operating as a FOD detection system, iFerretT can be deployed at airbases to meet the military’s surveillance needs. Featuring its unique advanced intelligent Vision technology, iFerret is a pioneering system capable of Battle Damage Assessment (BDA) during war time for runway surface condition monitoring and to support rapid
runway repair (RRR).

iFerret utilises electro-optic sensors to automatically detect, locate, classify and record craters/unexploded ordnance in the airbase. The timely and accurate assessment of damage to the airfield/runway resulting from the application of military force is critical as it allows the re-planning of flight landing/take-off and the prioritisation of runway repair.

iFerret is currently in operation at Singapore Changi Airport for FOD detection. Concurrently, iFerret is being piloted at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, the second busiest airport in the world, to monitor both the runway and taxiway.

Founded in 1989, Stratech Systems is principally engaged in the design, development, integration, implementation, maintenance and project management of information technology and advanced technology systems. The Group delivers large-scale complex, real-time, mission-critical systems in the areas of intelligent Vision, intelligent Transport Systems and e-Systems for governments and businesses.

In 2006, Stratech won the Research and Development prize for its intelligent Airfield/Runway Surveillance and Foreign Object and Debris (FOD) Detection System at the Asia Pacific ICT Awards. Stratech’s iFerret (the world’s first system to utilise intelligent Vision to detect and classify foreign objects, with the ability to pinpoint the location of the foreign objects) was awarded The Enterprise Challenge (TEC) initiative by the Prime Minister’s Office of Singapore in 2006.

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