Canadian Customs Deal Watershed For Syft

Canadian Customs Deal Watershed For Syft Technologies

Media release, 13 March-08, Syft Technologies Ltd, Christchurch, New Zealand: The confirmation of a contract to provide up to five Voice200® SIFT-MS units to Canadian customs is a watershed moment for Christchurch company Syft Technologies.

The significance of this deal for the future of the company should not be underestimated, according to Syft’s international sales manager, John Billows.

"This agreement with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has been the result of more than two years of technical and commercial discussions including the most rigorous and lengthy customer trials we have been involved with to date.

"Importantly, the purchase from the Canadian government is a significant achievement for us and will add further weight to our Container Air Analysis market penetration in North America and Europe in particular," Mr Billows said.

Because of the extensive testing carried out by CBSA, this deal is expected to help shorten the sales cycle for other North American companies interested in purchasing the technology.

The first Voice200® instrument is destined for use at the CBSA’s Laboratory and Scientific Services facility in Ottawa. It will be dispatched in March, and be used in a pilot test process to analyse and measure fumigants and chemicals occasionally found in shipping containers entering into Canada.

Syft's technology will help protect border services officers and port workers from daily exposure to toxic chemicals such as methyl bromide, phosphine, sulfuryl fluoride, benzene, toluene and other volatile chemicals as well as formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, ethylene oxide, ethylene dibromide and chloropicrin (trichloronitromethane).

The initial deal is expected to lead to deployment of units at the Canadian ports of Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax, however the commercial details are currently confidential.

The sale is the second sale of Syft instruments to a Customs service, with the first sale of five units of the Voice100 to the Australian Customs Service in 2005.

Syft marketing director, Rebecca Bain says the Australian deal was important for Syft in gaining an introduction to the CBSA.

"Getting the recommendation from Australian customs was a tremendous benefit in selling the Voice200® units to Canada. We are confident that having two Customs departments on our client list now will also assist us greatly in finalising further commercial opportunities with Customs and Border control services elsewhere in the world," she commented.

Both the Canadian and Australian governments are part of a technology grouping that also includes New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and the customs departments of all four countries work closely together on a range of border detection technologies.

The Canadian contract will be supported locally as well as by scientific and technical support from Syft's USA support centre and the New Zealand head office team.

Syft will further reinforce its success in Container Air Analysis with a trade display at the American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Expo (AIHce), to be held in Minneapolis in June, where all the major players in gas detection and occupational health screening services will be exhibiting. Syft have recently exhibited at Pittcon08, the USA's largest conference and expo for laboratory science, held earlier this month in New Orleans and will exhibit at IFT, the Food Technology Conference and Exhibition, also being held in New Orleans in early July.

Syft is currently recruiting staff to expand its USA sales and support presence, based from its Pittsburgh office. With instruments being shipped to both the USA and Canada for a variety of Food and Flavour, Food Safety and Container Air Analysis applications, the USA office will provide key account support and a platform for further market activity.

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