INDUSTRY INTERVIEW: Ahura Scientific, Inc
Douglas Kahn
Chairman and CEO
Ahura Scientific, Inc
Douglas Kahn is chairman and CEO at Ahura Scientific, Inc. He holds a BS in engineering from Cornell University and an MBA from Stanford University. He has taught courses at the Northeastern University Graduate School of Business and is a frequent guest lecturer at the Harvard Business School and Babson College.
Q: Ahura Scientific manufactures handheld instruments for chemical identification, including FirstDefender. Tell us about your newest product, TruDefender FT.
A: Our Raman-based FirstDefender enables first responders to quickly identify unknown solid and liquid chemicals directly in the field. This includes explosives, narcotics, chemical warfare agents, toxic industrial chemicals, white powders and more.
In 2008, we launched TruDefender FT, a three-pound handheld FTIR system for fieldbased chemical identification. With this FTIR platform, we added a complementary technology that is a widely-accepted and highly-selective technique for chemical identification and well-suited for many applications, including explosive ordnance disposal [EOD] and hazmat response.
Q: How are these instruments optimized for the military?
A: Military personnel and federal law enforcementorganizationsrequirerugged, lightweight equipment that can withstand the rigors of field use. Our instruments are designed to MIL-STD 810F standards for ruggedness, including drop, shock, vibration and chemical resistance. As a direct result of collaboration with our military customers, we also developed FirstDefender to ensure reliable operation in severe environmental conditions. These enhancements are now part of every product we ship.
We understand the real-world situations in which our products are used—and they’re certainly not used in a controlled lab environment. So rather than taking existing lab equipment and force-fitting it for field use, we took a fresh look at the application—and our customers’ real operating environments—and designed products specifically for their needs. Ease of use, an intuitive interface, mixture analysis and 24/7 reachback support are just a few attributes that were critical as we developed products for use on the front line. We also made sure that training was an integral part of our customer commitment, and that users can be proficient with less than a half-day of training.
Q: Can you discuss any of your military customers and how they’re using your products?
A: Ahura Scientific products are currently being used by every branch of the U.S. military— including extensive deployments in theater—as well as foreign military organizations throughout Europe and Asia. In addition to EOD and hazmat response applications, we’ve worked on several projects with the U.S. Army, including the development of a robotic chemical ID system for RDE-COM and an advanced chemical identification system for the U.S. Army Defense Threat Reduction Agency.
Q: What about deployments on U.S. soil?
A: State and local hazmat and law enforcement teams across the U.S. have deployed Ahura Scientific products as part of their chemical identification toolkits, as have each of the U.S. Army National Guard weapons of mass destruction civil support teams and numerous federal law enforcement agencies. Beyond public safety organizations, our products are also deployed by health departments, transportation administrations, manufacturing plants and other commercial organizations where chemical identification is required.
Q: To what do you attribute the success of your long-standing partnership with the U.S. military?
A: Since our inception, we’ve partnered closely with federal law enforcement agencies and defense organizations including the U.S. Army, U.S. Customs and Immigration, Federal Bureau of Investigations, and the Department of Homeland Security to ensure our development efforts are aligned with their priorities. We pride ourselves on these close relationships, which are a result of consistent communication, a dedication to serving the military and our ability to respond quickly to their needs. This type of trust and candid dialogue allow us to gain important insight into the military’s unique requirements so that the products we develop are specifically tailored for their use.
In addition, with a large number of our staff focused on R&D, we can be more innovative in our approach and bring new products to market more quickly, ensuring the military community always has the most advanced tools available for use. In fact, earlier this year, FirstDefender was demonstrated for the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities as example of the military’s preparedness to protect against weapons of mass destruction and the malicious use of toxic industrial chemicals. Major General Stephen V. Reeves, joint program executive officer for Chemical and Biological Defense for the Department of Defense, was one of three guests invited to speak in the panel presentation.
Q: Any final thoughts?
A: With chemical threats growing every day—whether acts of terrorism, illegally dumped industrial materials or clandestine drug labs—public safety demands that onsite identification capabilities continue to advance, and we believe that will be even more important in the coming years. We also believe that the current application of field-deployed, handheld spectroscopy products is just the tip of the iceberg and that there is tremendous potential for use across the breadth of the CBRN field. We’ll continue to bring new products to market to address these applications for military and public safety organizations both at home and abroad. ♦