European science and technology leader QinetiQ has announced that it is developing an enhanced GPS technology which is up to 1000 times more sensitive than existing GPS receivers, making it possible for signals to be picked up inside buildings and in extreme outdoor environments.

With the prisoner community growing dramatically in recent years and Home Office figures indicating that inmate numbers could increase from 72,500 to more than 109,900 by 2009 if present trends continue, QinetiQ's enhanced GPS could be used to relieve pressure on the UK's burgeoning prison population. GPS enabled 'bracelets' can, for example, be used to detect the movement of day-release and home-based prisoners, with the QinetiQ system able to extend GPS tracking into buildings, vehicles and into difficult outdoor environments such as densely wooded areas.

In addition to being much more sensitive than competing GPS systems and offering a rapid-time-to-first-position, the new technology is far more robust than competing technologies. This makes it more suitable for use in tracking released offenders, where convicted criminals would need to be constantly monitored for the programme to be effective and acceptable to the public.

QinetiQ manager Richard Noel says that the technology could create 'geofenced' areas for active or reactive use. A 'geofence' is an established geographic area of a map and may include rectangles, circles, ellipses, regions, or 'buffers' such as an object a set distance around other objects. A geofence can be regarded as a virtual boundary that will trigger a predefined response when crossed by an object or a person. In the context of prisoner tagging, a geofenced area is an area defined by its GPS co-ordinates where the tagged offender could either be restricted from leaving or prevented from entering. An 'active' system - which immediately relays signals every 30-seconds to relevant authorities - could be complemented by a 'reactive' system where data could be downloaded for analysis later.

"Today, no truly successful correctional system can operate exclusively as a lock-up service; 'security' is a far broader concept than bricks and mortar and CCTV cameras. GPS technology is about crime prevention and taking a more intelligent, cost-effective approach to imprisonment and prisoner management," said Noel.

A key advantage of the QinetiQ GPS system is it that it requires only a very small antenna, thereby reducing complexity, bulk and costs. Acknowledging the problems associated with attaching unwieldy GPS technology to prisoners, correctional services around the world are looking at widening the adoption of discretely sized electronic wrist and ankle bracelets.

Recent instances of successful arrests recorded by the US Department of Corrections indicates that the use of GPS ankle bracelets and has helped place tagged prisoners at the scene of robberies and violations of probation. The Department of Corrections in some US states ultimately wants to place the tracking bracelets on all high-risk offenders.

GPS was created by the US military for the provision of accurate position, movement and time measurement. The first GPS satellite was launched in 1978 and the system declared operational for civilian use in 1995. It currently operates 28 satellites in orbit 20,220km above the Earth. These continuously broadcast position and time data and are distributed so that a minimum of six satellites is generally in view anywhere in the world.

In addition to prisoner tracking devices, QinetiQ's GPS technology platform sits at the heart of a wide variety of new Location-Based Services (LBS), technologies which allow mobile phone users to determine their position and take advantage of a variety of useful new applications. These applications include services such as turn-by-turn navigation, mobile resource and logistics management, and other enterprise LBS applications.

http://www.qinetiq.com/news_room/newsreleases/2003/2nd_quarter/gps_tagging.html

QinetiQ today announces the signing of a 25-year contract with MOD for Test & Evaluation services. Known as the Long Term Partnering Agreement (LTPA), this contract, which takes effect from 1 April 2003, covers the management of the MOD's 22 principal ranges and is worth up to £5.6 billion.

The contract replaces the short-term contracts under which QinetiQ has previously operated the sites. LTPA provides the basis by which QinetiQ is able to invest up to £150 million in the modernisation of the ranges and thereby deliver savings to MOD customers of £700 million over the period of the contract.

The conclusion of the QinetiQ PPP with the introduction of the Carlyle Group as an investor has provided QinetiQ with the ability to fund its investment. Carlyle has taken a 33.8% stake in the company and around 2000 QinetiQ employees have taken up the opportunity to invest in equity amounting to 3.7%.

Glenn Youngkin (The Carlyle Group managing director), Colin Balmer (chief financial officer MOD) and Sir Denys Henderson join the QinetiQ Board. Other non-executive members are Dame Pauline Neville-Jones (chairman) and Jonathan Symonds. Executive directors are Sir John Chisholm (chief executive), Graham Love (chief financial officer) and Hal Kruth (group commercial director).

When making the LTPA announcement in the House of Commons today Defence Minister Dr Lewis Moonie said: "I am confident that the Long-Term Contract with QinetiQ will deliver very substantial savings to the taxpayer. Most importantly, the LTPA will provide a framework within which innovation and efficiency are encouraged and rewarded."

Sir John Chisholm said the completion of the PPP marked a major milestone in releasing the power of QinetiQ's science and technology to the benefit of its commercial and military customers. Further, the LTPA enabled QinetiQ to; "Invest in creating the kind of world class facilities which will provide our customers with the service they need at a price they can afford, while allowing our staff to participate in a challenging and rewarding future".

http://www.qinetiq.com/news_room/newsreleases/2003/1st_quarter/qinetiq4.html


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