Leidos Australia today announced it has selected Brisbane small business EPE to support the Australian Department of Defence’s LAND 2110 Phase 1B project. Under the subcontract, Leidos Australia and EPE will deliver $10 million worth of capabilities for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defence (CBRND) to the Australian Department of Defence’s Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG).
EPE will provision LCD 3.3 person-worn chemical detectors and Filmarray biological confirmatory systems to protect Australian Defence personnel from chemical and biological agents.
The LCD 3.3 is a personal device for the detection and identification of Chemical Warfare Agents (CWAs) and Toxic Industrial Chemicals (TICs), with audible and visual alarms that will be triggered when gas and vapour threats are detected and identified at or below “immediately dangerous to life and health” (IDLH) levels, by determining the agent or type, class, concentration and dosage of chemical exposure.
The device can be handheld or clipped to a belt, harness or shoulder strap, to enable the user to undertake their primary role without obstruction, and can provide up to 75 hours on a single pair of AA batteries. The LCD 3.3 has previously been selected by the US DoD for its Joint Chemical Agent Detector (JCAD) programme.
The FilmArray Multiplex PCR System enables users to test for a comprehensive panel of respiratory viruses in one easy-to-use multiplex PCR test that provides results in about an hour following a integrated sample preparation, amplification, detection and analysis process that requires 2 minutes of hands on time and can detect 16 bacterial, viral, and yeast targets that include several influenza viruses and pertussis (whopping cough) bateria.
Leidos Australia will support delivery and sustainment of the detectors and confirmatory systems for the life of the contract.
“EPE is proud to be a veteran-owned business with veteran employees who have served worldwide in specialist EOD, CIED and CBRN roles,” said Warwick Penrose, owner of EPE. “We are pleased to collaborate with Leidos and leverage our core business to provide specialist capabilities to our Australian Defence community.”
“Leidos has delivered complex logistics and CBRND capabilities globally for decades,” said Acting Leidos Australia Chief Executive, Paul Chase. “In creating our team for Land 2110, we have subcontracted with Australian SMEs, including EPE, to ensure we are delivering the best outcomes for Defence whilst supporting the growth and sustainment of the Australian industry.”
This is the fourth major subcontract awarded following the selection of Leidos Australia for LAND 2110 Phase 1B in September 2018, bringing the total amount awarded to more than $57 million. Earlier subcontracts had been issued to OPEC Systems in June 2019 while Cairns-based J3Seven and Melbourne’s Point Trading were awarded further subcontracts under the program in January 2020.
