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Advanced Water Safety Analysis for Deployed Operations

Advanced Water Safety Analysis for Deployed Operations

Press Contact: 202/225-4071 (office)

Project Name:	Advanced Water Safety Analysis for Deployed Operations
Project Address:	655 Phoenix Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Amount Requested:	$2,500,000
Federal Department or Agency:	Department of Defense
Individual or entity requesting this appropriation:	Translume Inc.
Value to Michigan’s 15th Congressional District and the American taxpayer:
Providing clean water to warfighters at forward operating locations remains a significant logistics challenge. It is essential that a soldier receive one to three gallons of clean water per day to prevent dehydration and up to six gallons of water per day for hygiene, meals and other uses. Treatment of water is necessary to prevent various common waterborne diseases, such as typhoid, cholera and dysentery. The Army's Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Unit (ROWPU) produces potable water that can meet Tri-Service Standards from any available source, including wells, lakes, seas, lagoons, rivers and oceans. The ROWPU purifies the water by filtering it through a variety of chemicals and membranes, but over time, these membranes may become compromised, resulting in warfighters drinking unsafe water without knowing it. Water purity is difficult to analyze and systems incur significant costs to maintain proper operations. With requested funding, Translume will complete prototype testing at Selfridge ANG base within 12 months. Then, over the next 12 months, Translume will improve the capability of its monitoring system product and will also test system with its industrial partner. Translume will perform a cost-analysis to reduce manufacturing costs. The result of this program will be a family of interoperable and retrofitable products for the U.S. military's existing fleet of ROWPU systems for immediate deployment. By the conclusion of this program, the Army, using core budget, will be able to procure monitoring systems for deployment with ROWPU units in theater. Translume Inc. is a small but growing company formed in 2001 and headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Translume will add high-quality engineering, research and manufacturing jobs to the Michigan economy. Translume's core competence is the employment of ultra high intensity femtosecond lasers for micromachining glass. The company builds on technologies developed at the University of Michigan, and is believed to be the only company in the U.S. skilled in these processes. The company is now evolving this base technology into a line of revolutionary products and services for defense, aerospace, biomedical, automotive, homeland security and other applications. Translume will add to Michigan's advanced technology industry, generating high-paying, high-multiplier research and development jobs and acting as a magnet for other emerging technology companies. Translume has recently subcontracted new work to several Michigan firms, including Mid Michigan Research (Okemos), Spot Design (Dexter), A Brown Design (Plymouth) and SMH (Ann Arbor).

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