Although the effects of the coronavirus pandemic were far-reaching, the security defense industry proved to be resilient enough to weather this storm. As a matter of fact, Defense News estimates that the top 100 defense companies raked in a combined $551 billion in 2020 representing a 5% increase compared to the prior year. Going forward, it appears that this trend is likely to continue as illustrated by President Biden’s $715 billion defense budget proposal, a $10 billion increase from the previous allocation as he shifts focus from the Middle East to emerging threats from China. For companies like Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd (TSXV:SCAN) (OTCQB:LDDFF), Evolv Technologies Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:EVLV), ShotSpotter (NASDAQ:SSTI), OSI Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSIS) and Honeywell International Inc (NASDAQ:HON) this signals a promising opportunity which if well-capitalized on could further strengthen these companies’ position in the industry.
The Defense Industry Appears Pandemic-Proof
With more variants of the coronavirus being discovered, it’s becoming all too clear that it’s going to be a long while before things get back to ‘normal’. Since the security defense industry appears to be insulated from these effects, it is not surprising that companies like Liberty Defense (TSXV:SCAN) (OTCQB:LDDFF) which provides multi-technology security solutions for concealed weapons and threat detection in high volume foot traffic areas look poised to continue delivering significant shareholder value.
Recently Liberty Defense revealed that it had entered into a collaboration agreement with Micro-X Ltd, a pioneer of medical and security imaging products using cold cathode X-ray sources to apply x-ray nanotech to weapons detection. In addition to this, Liberty has been hitting major corporate milestones including signing a major deal with the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The deal, which was announced on July 12, 2021, will provide Liberty Defense with $1 million in funding courtesy of the Israel-US Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation under a program that is sponsored jointly by the DHS and the Israel Ministry of Public Security (MOPS).
“Over the past several months, Liberty has announced continued progress on the development of our flagship HEXWAVE walk-through portal and the acquisition of aviation-specific threat detection technology for passenger screening,” said Liberty Defense CEO Bill Frain. “The development of HQ with Levitection will add to our portfolio to thwart the potential for terrorist acts in high traffic areas. This includes taking a layered approach to security which HQ will provide.”
Evolv Technologies Holdings Inc has also been strengthening its position in the defense industry going by recent developments. The company recently went public through a SPAC, resulting in a pro forma total enterprise value of approximately $1.3 billion. Evolv investors include Bill Gates, DCVC, Motorola Solutions, Finback Investment Partners, General Catalyst, Lux Capital, SineWave Ventures and STANLEY Ventures.
Collaboration and Innovation Appear to be Key Growth Drivers in Security Defense Industry
One emerging theme in the security defense industry that appears to be a key driver of growth is collaboration. For instance, ShotSpotter (NASDAQ:SSTI) just partnered with Anti-Trafficking International (ATI) to deploy its ShotSpotter Investigate solution for a one-year pilot with ATI’s National Human Trafficking Intelligence Center (NHTIC). ShotSpotter Investigate will be used as the central digital case folder for the NHTIC to streamline efforts to capture, analyze, connect and provide reporting and real-time intelligence to involved agencies across the US.
Another collaboration that fits into this theme is Honeywell International Inc (NASDAQ:HON) and ASM Global, a world-leading producer of entertainment experiences. The company will work with the ASM Global venue network to deploy a variety of technologies that support smarter, safer and more sustainable venues to improve the overall guest experience. The six-year agreement will support the digitization of the global venue network’s operations to establish new standards related to indoor air quality, safety and regulatory compliance for its VenueShield LIVE proprietary program for venue reopenings and operations.
Meanwhile, security and inspection systems provider OSI Systems’ (NASDAQ:OSIS) security division was one of three vendors awarded an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract by the US Customs and Border Protection for multi-energy portal x-ray systems. The contract, which has a potential value of up to $480 million, contains a five-year ordering period for systems and up to 10 years for potential maintenance support.
In short, the security defense industry seems well-positioned to continue growing in spite of the uncertainty in the broader economy which bodes well for companies like Liberty Defense Holdings.
For more information about Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd (TSXV:SCAN) (OTCQB:LDDFF), click here.
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6) This document contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements, within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation, (collectively, “forward-looking statements”), which reflect management's expectations regarding Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s future growth, future business plans and opportunities, expected activities, and other statements about future events, results or performance. Wherever possible, words such as “predicts”, “projects”, “targets”, “plans”, “expects”, “does not expect”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “anticipate” or “does not anticipate”, “believe”, “intend” and similar expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative or grammatical variation thereof or other variations thereof, or comparable terminology have been used to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements relating to: (a) revenue generating potential with respect to Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s industry; (b) market opportunity; (c) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s business plans and strategies; (d) services that Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. intends to offer; (e) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s milestone projections and targets; (f) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s expectations regarding receipt of approval for regulatory applications; (g) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s intentions to expand into other jurisdictions including the timeline expectations relating to those expansion plans; and (h) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s expectations with regarding its ability to deliver shareholder value. Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and are based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management in light of management’s experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, as of the date of this document including, without limitation, assumptions about: (a) the ability to raise any necessary additional capital on reasonable terms to execute Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s business plan; (b) that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner; (c) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s ability to procure equipment and operating supplies in sufficient quantities and on a timely basis; (d) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s ability to enter into contractual arrangements with additional Pharmacies; (e) the accuracy of budgeted costs and expenditures; (f) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s ability to attract and retain skilled personnel; (g) political and regulatory stability; (h) the receipt of governmental, regulatory and third-party approvals, licenses and permits on favorable terms; (i) changes in applicable legislation; (j) stability in financial and capital markets; and (k) expectations regarding the level of disruption to as a result of CV-19. Such forward-looking information involves a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual plans, intentions, activities, results, performance or achievements of Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. to be materially different from any future plans, intentions, activities, results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks include, without limitation: (a) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s operations could be adversely affected by possible future government legislation, policies and controls or by changes in applicable laws and regulations; (b) public health crises such as CV-19 may adversely impact Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s business; (c) the volatility of global capital markets; (d) political instability and changes to the regulations governing Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.’s business operations (e) Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. may be unable to implement its growth strategy; and (f) increased competition.
Except as required by law, Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future event or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Neither does Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. nor any of its representatives make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, sufficiency or completeness of the information in this document. Neither Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. nor any of its representatives shall have any liability whatsoever, under contract, tort, trust or otherwise, to you or any person resulting from the use of the information in this document by you or any of your representatives or for omissions from the information in this document.
7) Any graphs, tables or other information demonstrating the historical performance or current or historical attributes of Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. or any other entity contained in this document are intended only to illustrate historical performance or current or historical attributes of Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. or such entities and are not necessarily indicative of future performance of Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. or such entities.
