Table Top Device based on Nanostructured Sensors for the continuous ENvironmental monitoring of EXplosive substances in sensitive areas

Project Information

SENEX

Grant agreement ID: 673138

DOI

10.3030/673138

Project closed

EC signature date 25 June 2015

Start date 1 July 2015

End date 31 December 2015

Funded under

• Secure societies - Protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens

Total cost

€ 71 429,00

EU contribution

€ 50 000,00

Coordinated by

ARC - CENTRO RICERCHE APPLICATE SRL
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SENEX (Table Top Device based on Nanostructured Sensors for the continuous ENvironmental monitoring of EXplosive substances in sensitive areas)

Reporting period: 2015-07-01 to 2015-12-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

SENEX Project aims at the industrialization of an innovative explosive trace detector that can be used in airport control activities, both as stand-alone solution or combined with other security products like X-Ray detectors. The SENEX device is based on surface plasmonic resonance phenomenon and it fills the growing needs of security professionals to have the ability both to detect a wide range of explosive substances, and to adapt as threats and their needs change. By the use of an innovative automatic microelectronic system based on nano-structured sensors, SENEX system is capable of continuously detecting and identifying explosives during a single analysis, while maintaining high sensitivity.
SENEX device has the potential to satisfy all the requirements for the trace detection of explosives because it can overcome all the technical and commercial barriers connected to use of conventional sensors based techniques, i.e. Ion Mobility Spectrometry, Gas Chromatography, Computer Tomography, Colorimetry and Chemi-Luminescence. Most of the existing devices are bulky, expensive and require long lasting procedures and complex training activities in the start-up phase.
The first market application is civil airport sector but soon the market will be extended to several sectors with different regulations, i.e. cruise ship terminal, public critical infrastructures (government buildings, embassies, etc.), Private Critical Infrastructures (public area, shopping centers, Railways/Subway stations, borders).

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The most important findings of Phase 1 was first, the market analysis, that allowed to define the market sectors, the competitors and the technological drivers, and then the definition of the Business Plan associated to the project, which will allow ARC to increase its turnover by 7,2 million € within 3 years from start of commercialization, with an internal rate of return (ROI) of 43 %. This is consistent with the innovation strategy that ARC plans for the coming years.
Besides, it was agreed to create a consortium with 2 SMEs (a company specialized in industrial design, product engineering and industrialization and a security service provider for airport) in order to industrialize the innovative device and to parallelize the sensing detection to a broad spectrum of detectable molecules, ranging from several kinds of explosives to even drugs. The authorization and certification strategy was defined in order to arrive at the commercialization of SENEX in the airport sector as soon as Phase 2 of the SME Instrument will end.
The IPR study and performed analysis confirmed on the one hand the freedom to operate, and on the other the possibility to protect the products that will be marketed at end of Phase 2.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

SENEX fills the growing need of security professionals to have the ability both to detect a wide range of explosive substances, and to adapt as threats and their needs change. By the use of an innovative automatic microelectronic system based on nano-structured sensors, SENEX system is capable of continuously detecting and identifying explosives during a single analysis, while maintaining high sensitivity. SENEX will bring a new family of devices for the detection of explosives to the market, having the following as key value drivers: wide range of detectable compounds, fast analysis time, high sensitivity, high reliability and continuous detection. The mass deployment of the novel cost effective, easy to use explosive trace detector can accomplish an astonishing improvement in the protection against explosive-based terrorism threats.

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