News

September 2006: XRF Corporation launches the EVA-1 Radiation Alarm.

The EVA-1 Radiation Alarm introduces a new concept in radiation detection. The EVA-1 is the only radiation alarm designed for permanent installation on emergency vehicles. The external sensor detects elevated radiation levels and the internal indicator alerts responders. Incident commanders now have the immediate situational awareness needed to direct emergency response protocol.

This rugged system requires no maintenance, minimum training and is offered at a low cost. The EVA-1 is appropriate for any application that benefits from the advanced warning of radiation hazards.

July 2006: XRF Corporation releases the next generation ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier with a new CdTe detector.

The next generation ICS-4000 with the a new CdTe detector is now available and offers several improvements:

More efficiency - CdTe detector provides up to x10 increase in photopeak counts at 662 keV

Better resolution - CdTe detector provides up to 1% resolution at 662 keV

More waterproof package - offers IP65 protection

Better shock resistance - rubber bumpers reduce risk of damage if dropped

Improved N42.34 performance - In house testing against ANSI standard N32.34 reveals that the CdTe detector will identify most radionuclides required by the standard at 50 microR/h in under 2 minutes.

June 2006: XRF Corporation hosts Open Mic Night during the HPS Annual Meeting in Providence RI

In appreciation of the many musicians in the Health Physics Society, XRF Corporation hosted an Open Mic Night at the Ri~Ra Irish Pub in Providence during the Annual Meeting.

Tom Hazlett, President, recruited his long time R&B band, the Barn Owls, to play for the event. After an opening set by the Barn Owls, the floor opened up to any musician in the audience who wanted to play along with the band. Over 125 songs were available to choose from.

The turnout for the event was fantastic. Ten brave musicians from the Health Physics community graced the stage to perform various songs. They were heartily cheered on by their friends and colleagues.

Based on feedback from members of the Society, The Open Mic Night may now become a tradition for the HPS meetings. XRF Corporation is proud to have brought this event to The Society and hopes that future HPS meetings will keep on rocking!

April 2006: XRF Corporation participates in a disaster drill coordinated by Boston Emergency Services on April 3, 2006.

The disaster drill timed the ability of Boston EMS to set up a portable decontamination tent, setup radiation portals and prepare personnel to decontaminate victims of a radiological disaster. The drill tested the ability of the radiation portals to detect trace amounts of radiological contamination on victims. The victims that triggered portal alarms were triaged to a staging area where Massport Police Officers used ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifiers to locate and identify the contaminants on the victims prior to their entry into the decontamination tent.

A paper co-authored by XRF Corporation and Boston Emergency Services will analyze the data collected during the disaster drill and apply it to mass transit screening applications. Jennifer Collins will present this paper as a panelist at the IEEE Conference on Technologies for Homeland Security to be held June 7 & 8, 2006 at the Volpe Transportation Center, 55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA.

January 2006: XRF Corporation begins free regional training seminars for ICS-4000

We are glad to offer hands-on workshops with our customers to ensure you get the most out of your ICS-4000. Starting in 2006 XRF Corporation will provide free regional training sessions to our customers. The current schedule is as follows:

March 2006 - Boston, MA
May 2006 - Albuquerque NM
August 2006 - Knoxville, TN
November 2006 - Idaho Falls, ID

Participation in the training sessions is by invitation only. If you would like to attend a training session near you, please contact XRF Corporation. Trainers are also available to schedule on-site training sessions at your facility. Please contact XRF Corporation for pricing and availability.

August 2005 : New PC software available

The ICS Explorer PC software that provides access to stored ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier data files has been improved. Based on customer feedback, the PC software feature set has been expanded. Now, saved data files in the ICS-4000 can be sorting by name, date or comment. An upload and delete function uploads all saved data files from the ICS-4000 to the PC and deletes them from the ICS-4000 memory. A plot function automatically charts the spectrum, and prints out the dose rate and identified radionuclides contained in a data file. Finally, a file download function allows users to update the ICS-4000 device software using the ICS Explorer program. This software is free to all users of the ICS-4000. Please contact us to receive this useful new software!

May 2005: XRF Presents to the IEEE on spectroscopic portals

XRF Corporation was invited to present to the 2005 IEEE Conference on Technologies for Homeland Security. Jennifer Collins participated as a panelist on the Tech-1 Nuclear and Radiation Sensors Session, presenting on "Advanced Sensors for Pedestrian Spectroscopic Portals". This presentation examined the existing radiation detection technologies for pedestrian portal applications and described the integration of XRF Corporation's ICS-4000e radionuclide identifier into the GE EntryScan3 portal for radionuclides, explosives and narcotics detection.

February 2005: ICS-4000 on the AEL of DHS

The ICS-4000 was testing by NIST against the ANSI standard N42.34. Testing results are now available at the Responder Knowledge Base.

"DHS, through the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT) has sponsored the development of a web site for the responder community called the Responder Knowledge Base (RKB). The mission of the RKB is "To provide Emergency Responders, purchasers, and planners with a trusted, integrated, on-line source of information on products, certifications, standards, grants, and other equipment-related information."

Through participation in the ANSI N42.34 testing, the ICS-4000 is on the Authorized Equipment List (AEL) and is eligible for purchase with Homeland Security Grant funding.

January 2005: ICS-4000 INTEGRATED WITH THE ALLEN-VANGUARD MARK II ROBOT

XRF Corporation collaborated with Allen Vanguard to integrate the ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier into the Vanguard Mark II EOD robot. This nimble remotely operated robot is used worldwide to detect and dismantle explosive ordinance. By adding the ICS-4000 to the Mark II robot, EOD technicians controlling the robot from a command and control unit can now determine if the suspected ordinance is a “dirty bomb” or other tactical nuclear device. Other applications for the Mark II robot include border surveillance and inspections of “hot zones” for the identification of present radionuclides. The ICS-4000 is available as an accessory for the Vanguard Mark II robot in 2005.

December 2004: XRF CORPORATION CELEBRATES 10 YEARS IN BUSINESS

Incorporated in late November 1994, XRF Corporation was founded to develop and supply xrf and radiation detection instrumentation to environmental and security industries. In the ten years since incorporation XRF Corporation has developed state of the art x-ray and radiation detection sensors and systems and has been granted patents and won awards for such innovation. The ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier was released in 2000 and won an R&D 100 award that year. XRF Corporation is proud of it’s research and development accomplishments. Recognized as a reliable supplier to the radiation safety industry, XRF Corporation will continue to serve this essential community for years to come

November 2004: ORPHAN SOURCE RECOVERY PROJECT USING THE ICS-4000

The Orphan Source Recovery Project of the Department of Energy is developing protocol for utilizing gamma ray and neutron radiation measurements to quantify the contents of sealed sources that are poorly characterized. Additionally, the Nuclear and Radiological Threat Reduction Task Force has integrated with the International Radiological Threat Reduction Program. XRF Corporation understands that the ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier is playing an active role in these and other orphan source recovery initiatives. Contact us for more information on XRF Corporation’s participation.

October 2004: REVISION 3 SOFTWARE RELEASED

Recently, XRF Corporation released Revision 3 software for the ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifier. Enhancements for the hand held device include one button operation through an easy to use interface to display identified radionuclides and detected field strengths. The time to identify radionuclides has been reduced through use of new algorythms and pulse processing techniques. The resulting system provides end users with a fast and accurate radionuclide identifier, microR and survey meter.

Revision 3 software is currently loaded into all new ICS-4000 devices. Retrofit upgrades are available, and encouraged, free of charge for all existing ICS-4000 radionuclide identifiers in the field. Please contact XRF Corporation (617/623-7300 or email at info@xrfcorp.com) for more information on Revision 3 or to schedule your upgrade.

September 2004: XRF CONNECTION TO H-BOMB SEARCH

The government team recently searching for a lost hydrogen bomb off the Georgia Coast utilized devices manufactured by XRF Corporation based in Somerville, Massachusetts.

According to the Associated Press, an independent search group thought they had found a large object last July that was emitting high doses of radioactivity off the coast of Savannah. The group used radiation and metal detection equipment to search an area in Wassaw Sound off Tybee Island where a MK-15 bomb was reportedly dropped by a B-47 aircraft in 1958 after a collision with a F-86 fighter jet. Recently, a team of specialists from the Air Force, Department of Defense and Department of Energy sought to identify weapons grade uranium in the unknown object(s), perhaps confirming that the original group had, in fact, discovered the legendary Tybee Bomb.

First, the July group led by retired Air Force Lt. Col. Derek Duke utilized the XRF Corporation’s ICS-4000e Radionuclide Identifier with submersible probe, among other devices, to locate the specific area of high levels of radioactivity. Later, the team of federal experts employed the ICS-4000e to search for a hypothetical bomb’s highly enriched uranium in 10-15 feet of Georgia mud below the Wassaw Sound. It was finally determined, however, that the radiation was naturally occurring.

XRF Corporation designs, manufactures, sells and supports complete systems for radiation detection and isotope identification. Located in Somerville, Massachusetts, XRF Corporation is a proud supplier of products and services for first responders, homeland security, nuclear power and medical applications. “We are a small yet strong willed company committed to a cleaner environment and a safer homeland,” said XRF President and CEO Tom Hazlett.

Feel free to contact us for more information on XRF Corporation’s participation in this recovery effort.

June 2004: ICS-4000 SUBMITTED TO NIST FOR ANSI N42.34 TESTING

NIST contacted XRF Corporation to obtain several ICS-4000 Radionuclide Identifiers for testing against the ANSI N42.34 standard. ICS-4000 devices were shipped to Oak Ridge National Lab in May for this testing. The devices were loaded with Revision 3 software that expedites the time to identify radionuclides of interest to NIST. In addition, the new Revision 3 software automates analysis by providing the end user with one button operation to display both identified radionuclides and field strengths on one screen simultaneously. Based on in-house testing against the standard, XRF Corporation is confident that the performance of the ICS-4000 against ANSI N42.34 will exceed competing systems in several areas. These include ease of use, the identification of multiple radionuclides, shielded radionuclides, accuracy of identifications at high field strengths and across extreme temperature ranges and durability. XRF Corporation looks forward to the release of these test results in the first quarter of 2005. Contact XRF Corporation for more information on our in-house ANSI N42.34 test results.

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