BCIT (British Columbia Institute of Technology)
BCIT Partners With Alliance Enterprise Corp on Landmine Detection
Burnaby, British Columbia (ots/PRNewswire)
- Education and Industry Come Together to Develop Better Technologies to Find Landmines
The British Columbia Institute of Technology and The Alliance Enterprise Corporation have come together to develop new technologies for the detection of landmines around the world.
The United Nations estimates that more than 100 million landmines are currently undetected in dozens of countries, many having histories of political and civil unrest, and the use of landmines continues to threaten innocent people who are injured or killed when they accidentally detonate a hidden landmine. A further 180 million landmines may be still be stockpiled around the world.
BCIT has entered an agreement with The Alliance Enterprise Corporation, in conjunction with Roke Manor Research Ltd, a Siemens company in the United Kingdom, to research and develop a more accurate method to detect and, as the technology grows, disarm landmines. Most detection and removal is currently done by hand or with dogs which is time-consuming and inefficient.
"We are in the very early phase of this exciting agreement," says Lane Trotter, dean of BCIT's School of Transportation, "but this partnership marks the start of a relationship with Alliance Enterprise that will not only benefit BCIT by providing research and educational opportunities, but will have a positive impact in the many areas of the world affected by landmines."
Building on the existing technology of Alliance's Landmine Locator (LML) airborne carrier, BCIT will conduct research to develop a sensor platform which will be attached to the LML, a 40-foot inflatable structure called a Hystar that is capable of flying at very low altitudes. This system will be mobile and each field unit will require two to three people to manage each unit. These workers will manage the flight system remotely, thereby decreasing the risk to those who search for landmines.
"Not only are we pleased to partner with BCIT on developing this technology, we are thrilled to be working with an institute of BCIT's calibre as a leader in training to, in the future, provide all of the necessary instruction for this vital equipment, on an international scale," says George Ninkovich, CEO of The Alliance Enterprise Corporation.
The British Columbia Institute of Technology is the largest post- secondary institution in British Columbia and Canada's leading polytechnic institute, with more than 48,000 full and part-time students pursuing a variety of polytechnic programs leading to degrees, diplomas, and certificates in the areas of business, computing, trades, engineering and health sciences.
The Alliance Enterprise Corporation, based in California with an international office in Vancouver, was founded by Mr. Ninkovich and is a leader in developing aerial solutions for industries ranging from forestry to security.
Contact:
For further information: Allison Markin, Media Relations Manager,
BCIT, Tel. +1-(604)-432-8773, Cell +1-(604)-836-6700,
allison_markin@bcit.ca; Diane Hunt, Media Relations, Alliance
Enterprise Corp, Tel. +1-(604)-601-2099, diane@taecorp.com