Brown links systems for airspace security

Sept. 11, 2001, was not only a day Americans will remember, it was a defining moment for Brown International Corp. That was the day the Huntsville-based company became a key player in protecting American soil.

Engineers at Brown International have designed a program known as the Joint Based Expeditionary Connectivity Center or JBECC. Developed through the Space and Missile Defense Battle Lab for the Air Force, it is a command and control system that integrates communication and radar from the Federal Aviation Administration with that of the military.

Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the JBECC system has been on the job and is used for various operations from protecting the president to providing security in key locations such as the G8 summit of international leaders in Georgia last June to the Republican National Convention in New York.

The idea is to create one single picture so airspace can be accurately monitored.

"The two operate different communication and radar systems and this ties it all together," said Terry Beane, company president. That allows the military to make effective decisions when seconds count. Len Ingram, vice president of programs, adds JBECC also allows the military not only to see incoming air traffic, but also to have some sense of the situation from the civilian as well as military side, "so we don't shoot down an airplane without good cause."

Brown International's emergence as a player in homeland defense takes the company into a new direction to include civilian operations. For the past 15 years, the company has worked to support military programs at home and abroad.

The firm started as a consumer electronics business in 1985. As the cost of electronics dropped, the company began to explore military options. Beane, a former Marine, said that as technology began to rapidly change, he saw the "need for the military to be smarter using the commercial world." As a result, engineers found a new market boosting military operations.

One of the first programs Brown International developed for the military is a system called JTADS. Used during the Gulf War, it allowed the Patriot missile program to detect incoming SCUD missiles in order to intercept them. The program was so successful that other countries begin employing Brown International's services.

Now the company has more than 140 employees worldwide with annual sales of $19 million dollars annually. Brown International works to support not only domestic but also international operations in such countries as South Korea, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain and Greece. Brown International also partnered with a software company to help provide security for the 2004 Olympics in Greece.

Beane says one of the advantages of Brown International is its size and commitment. "We can offer our customers the flexibility of a small business environment with the benefits of large corporation capabilities," he said. "Our operations allow us to provide unprecedented cost-effective solutions and rapid delivery time for the customers."

As for the company's future, Beane says Brown International will continue "to think outside the box" to integrate new technology that will help military as well as civilian operations make better decisions faster.

"It makes you feel good to come from a military background, and that was your whole life, and it's rewarding to continue that relationship and provide meaningful service to the country."