Cantech Letter catches up with Plymouth Rock CEO Dana Wheeler

Dana, the last time we spoke to you was before the outbreak of the coronavirus, in November. What has the company been up to since?

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, our PRT team has been moving forward on all three of our core technologies.  The SS1 shoe-scanner has received strong interest from various airport security organizations and security companies that address border patrol and prison safety. Also, a major gaming entertainment company has strong interest in using the SS1 for theft prevention, people stealing various items by way of their shoes.

The PRT X1 Drone platform is now commercial available for selling into various markets and industries. Our design team has expanded the X1’s sensor capability and we are planning to start an initial run of production units for the marketplace.

A new version called the XV has been designed and has been tested in a scale model trial. This drone has VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) capability, a much larger payload capacity and a longer flight time than the X1.

And finally, PRT’s Wi-Ti technology has been going through initial antenna and scattering tests using 5G off-the-shelf components. The goal is to build enough of a database and utilize AI (Artificial Intelligence) to predict, with a high probability of detection, threats on people in unstructured crowds using conventional Wi-Fi networks.

Tell me about the drone initiative with the U.K. National Health Service (NHS) for emergency apparatus delivery….

PRT’s X1 Platform will be used in a series of airborne tests for the UK National Health Service (NHS) for emergency apparatus delivery. This will involve several test scenarios, that if successful will lead to on-scene delivery of defibrillators and other critical trauma assistance technologies. The scope of the work involves the University of Warwick, The East Midland NHS Trust and the Welsh Ambulance NHS Trust.

You also announced that former Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Douglas Smith, has joined your board. What does Mr. Smith bring to the table for you?

Former Assistant Secretary Smith brings to PRT deep expertise from both the operational side having served at the highest levels of the national security community, and a track record of expertise in growing companies having been a serial entrepreneur.  Mr. Smith brings an extensive Rolodex of contacts and management experience to help PRT rapidly grow to the next level. Having served on numerous boards, Mr. Smith will also brings a strong background in best practices for board governance.

Can you tell us about Plymouth Rock’s supply agreement with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory?

NASA JPL has been a customer of our technical team for many years. We have provided numerous millimeter-wave radar solutions for both their robotic space and Earth science missions. Our acquisition of Aerowave last year provided another product solution that JPL has been using for over 40 years, millimeter-wave waveguide components for various radar and radio astronomy applications.

Are you finding new markets for your existing line of security products or is the demand coming from where you expected?

Absolutely, one example is the Theft Prevention market that our SS1 system can address. Also, the medical applications as discussed above involving our X1/XV Drone platforms. Search and Rescue services for our drones are also a new market outside threat detection that we are seriously looking at.

How is the financing situation looking for the company?

The Company has recently completed just over $1 Million in funding and has no debt which will allow the company to grow its business at this critical time when our platform of threat technologies are being
commercialized.

Where do you think Plymouth Rock will be in a year’s time, milestone-wise?

We believe that the X1/XV Drone platform and the SS1 shoe-scanner system will be being produced for various customers such as Law Enforcement agencies, Search & Rescue, airport security organizations, and commercial companies that require scanning people for safety and security reasons.