2014 Digital Yearbook of Homeland Security Awards
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GSN <strong>2014</strong> <strong>Digital</strong> <strong>Yearbook</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Homeland</strong> <strong>Security</strong> <strong>Awards</strong> Recipients<br />
Government Agency <strong>Awards</strong><br />
U.S. Customs and Border Protection<br />
– <strong>2014</strong> Platinum Winner<br />
<strong>Awards</strong> Category:<br />
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––<br />
Most Notable Federal Government <strong>Security</strong> Program/<br />
Project or Initiative<br />
Name <strong>of</strong> Nominated Product, Service,<br />
or Program:<br />
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––<br />
Securing America’s Borders: The Non-Intrusive<br />
Inspection (NII) Systems Program, Southwestern Ports<br />
<strong>of</strong> Entry<br />
Reason this entry deserves to win:<br />
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––<br />
There are many challenges to CBP’s mission <strong>of</strong> securing<br />
America’s borders, including smuggling <strong>of</strong> drugs, currency,<br />
weapons, ammunition, illegal goods, and humans.<br />
The Southwestern border is extremely difficult to<br />
protect, 2,000 miles long and one <strong>of</strong> the world’s busiest<br />
borders, with more than 5 million trucks and 166 million<br />
people crossing each year*. Drug trafficking organizations<br />
pose a grave threat to border security, as Mexico is<br />
the source and/or transit country for heroin and most <strong>of</strong><br />
the cocaine, marijuana, and methamphetamine illegally<br />
imported into the U.S. Those same organizations also<br />
attempt to smuggle currency and weapons back into<br />
Mexico.<br />
To address these threats, CBP has implemented a<br />
layered security strategy which involves thousands<br />
<strong>of</strong> personnel, canine teams, and air/maritime/remote<br />
surveillance, and state-<strong>of</strong>-the-art detection technology.<br />
One component, the Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII)<br />
Systems Program, utilizes advanced inspection technology<br />
to more effectively screen conveyances/cargo while<br />
improving processing time. As <strong>of</strong> 2013, 310 large-scale<br />
NII systems were deployed on U.S. borders.** Many NII<br />
systems are deployed along the Southwestern border,<br />
including 26 Z Portal ® cargo and vehicle inspection<br />
systems and 61 Z Backscatter ® Van (ZBV ® ) mobile cargo<br />
and vehicle inspection systems, both manufactured by<br />
American Science and Engineering, Inc. (AS&E).<br />
In order to bolster its detection capabilities without<br />
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