Los Alamos National Laboratory recently started trialing a pair of high-tech security screening systems developed and sold by a Boston-area defense company as one of the East Coast firm's first customers.
That company, Liberty Defense, shipped two of its Hexwave walkthrough screening systems to the Northern New Mexico laboratory in early October. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) was the first customer to receive production units of the security system, said Bill Frain, Liberty Defense's CEO and director.
The systems use what's called millimeter wave technology — the same tech used in large walkthrough screening devices at airports — to create three-dimensional images of people as they step through the systems. Those images allow security personnel to identify a wide range of anomalies that a person might have, including liquid gels, powders and recording devices, for example.
A machine-learning algorithm is built into the systems to automatically detect a range of anomalies, as well. That algorithm is trained on "hundreds of thousands" of pieces of data, Frain said, and he added Liberty Defense plans to continually train the artificial intelligence with "different types of threats and shapes."
LANL purchased the two Hexwave units for "initial testing" in early August, per a news release from Liberty Defense. Frain told New Mexico Inno the cost of each unit is under $100,000; the price varies depending on the customer, he added.
Other customers that have deployed Liberty Defense's Hexwave systems include airports, universities and government facilities, and the company plans to ship units to courthouses. Liberty Defense has a backlog of about 35 units currently, Frain said; LANL is the first national laboratory the company has worked with.
"We're excited to be working with Liberty Defense and to conduct an initial test of the Hexwave system to further assist us in mitigating security concerns and working towards a customized solution for our unique and continuously evolving screening objectives," Joe Gustafson, deployed security specialist for the lab, said in a statement.
Frain said representatives from LANL visited Liberty Defense's office in Boston prior to purchasing the units. The ability to update the software behind Hexwave as threats evolve over time and the systems' mobility — they're built on wheels — were a few of the lab's considerations, he said.
LANL, which is operated by Triad National Security LLC for the National Nuclear Safety Administration, an agency under the U.S. Department of Energy, employs just over 14,000 people, according to its most recent economic impact on New Mexico report. That number could grow closer to 16,000 in coming years, too, which would be an all-time high for the lab, Kathy Keith, director of LANL's community partnerships, told New Mexico Inno in February.
Security is at the "forefront" of LANL's work, Gustafson said. It's been a broader concern for the Department of Energy, too; a May report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) points to repeated failures to implement an insider threat protection program, including seven recommendations for the department.
"Threats can come from external adversaries or from 'insiders,' including employees or visitors with trusted access," the GAO report states.
Liberty Defense employs about 28 people and is targeting the delivery of around 150 Hexwave units in 2024, Frain said.
