The day was designed to showcase a broad range of innovation including technologies from across the defence and security sectors. BAE Systems wanted people to share information, learn from one another and provide an ‘incubation space’ that would in turn create new ideas and collaborations.
“BAE Systems’ innovation activities demonstrate the importance of bringing industry and customers together with SMEs and academia to share skills and knowledge,” said Professor Andy Wright, director technology acquisition: strategic capability solutions at BAE Systems.
“Human Recognition Systems participated in the Innovations Live event after taking a key integration role in our Investment In Innovation (I3) programme, working with other partners to combine advanced biometric recognition capabilities. With innovation at the heart of everything they do, HRS demonstrated how its approach towards novel biometric technology and integration capabilities can add significant value in an open innovation environment.”
Professor Wright continued: “The contribution from HRS prompted a great deal of interest because the subject of biometrics is far reaching and crosses over into all manner of industry sectors. The company’s presentation was thought-provoking, and clearly illustrated that its own technology joins some exceptional talent at the forefront of British innovation.”
BAE Systems has been particularly interested in supporting the technology behind ‘biometrics on the move’. This project integrates partner SMEs’ capabilities in face and iris recognition, working with I3 investees – among them OmniPerception and Smart Sensors – to enable a biometric scan to be captured as people walk without the need for a static procedure as there is today.
Biometrics and human behaviour analytics
HRS is recognised as a UK leader in biometrics and human behaviour analytics technology, developing and delivering products to resolve clients’ challenges with identity management.
HRS operates in the aviation sector, civil and Government, energy and mining and construction, helping clients to manage operational challenges in security, people flow, identity verification and policy enforcement.
Simon Meyer, HRS’ chief operating officer who gave the presentation at BAE Systems, said: “Contributing to a day where some of the best innovators in the UK’s defence sector had gathered was a great privilege and thoroughly enjoyable.”
Meyer stated: “We received a fantastic response from the audience and from the people who visited our exhibition stand. It was a great opportunity to talk about our technology which, historically, has often succeeded with little or no profile beyond the world of biometrics and our clients.”
Some of the clients who have commissioned high profile identity projects from HRS of late include: Manchester Airport, the UK MoD, Carillion, HM Prisons and Gatwick Airport.
Innovation now “critical” to success of UK plc
Meyer stated in his presentation on the day: “Innovation is now critical to the success of UK plc. However, while the blue chips grab the headlines when it comes to innovation, the lifeblood of many SMEs is in creating new and innovative products and solutions that truly make a difference.”
This 20-minute presentation provides insightful content to any business interested in understanding the culture of innovation from an SME perspective: how to get the best out of a pioneering company with big ideas or organisations who want to learn more about biometrics and how their deployment can provide significant returns on investment.
Before he joined HRS in 2004, Meyer (who studied business administration at Bath University) worked with Accenture – the global management consulting company – where he developed extensive project management, business process engineering and delivery experience for a number of large IT transformation projects.
Former clients included Tesco, BP and BHS.
You can watch the presentation by accessing the video clip below
