General Atomics

Smiths Detection LCDs selected by JMOD

Smiths Detection is to supply LCD 4 personal chemical detectors to the Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD) for deployment via its Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF).


 
Image courtesy Smiths Detection

 
Following an extensive and competitive product evaluation by the JMOD, the LCD3.3 and LCD 4 were chosen for their performance, flexibility and easy integration into the JMOD system.  
 
Dr Sarah Robinson, Portfolio Director – CBRNE at Smiths Detection said: “The JMOD’s decision to invest in this technology underlines the LCD’s status as the most widely deployed personal chemical detector in armed forces across the globe.

“We are customising this new consignment to meet the specific detection demands of the JMOD and, of course, to include a Japanese language option.”
 
Compact and wearable, the LCD 4 provides advanced warnings, detecting and identifying gas and vapour threats at or below immediate danger to life and health (IDLH) levels. Using the latest Ion Mobility Spectrometry (IMS) technology, it can determine the agent or type, class, concentration and dosage of chemical exposure.
 
In the future, a simple XID add-on could expand the gas and vapour detection capabilities to include solid and liquid sampling; plus detection of narcotics, explosives and low-volatility chemical traces such as Novichok (a new chemical warfare agent).
 
Handled locally by Smiths Detection’s distribution partner, S.T. Japan, the contract includes a total of 462 units with delivery staggered between January and March 2025 and January 2026.

Related

Donite Plastics appoints Des Hassett as General Manager
Des Hassett
Donite Plastics appoints Des Hassett as General Manager
Experienced manufacturing professional Des Hassett, has been appointed General Manager for Donite Plastics, based at their Saintfield facility in County Down, Northern Ireland, to lead operations and enhance productivity.
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
ADS Charity Cycle
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
Industry riders covered 334 miles from Belfast to Bristol in support of Combat Stress, O2e and Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
Windracers proves ULTRA in Ukraine, but Britain poses a different drone challenge
Windracers ULTRA drone flying in Wales
Windracers proves ULTRA in Ukraine, but Britain poses a different drone challenge
Three years of operations in Ukraine have helped Windracers adapt its autonomous aircraft at speed. Bringing those lessons home requires a balance between rapid development and peacetime safety.
Aerospace Defence Insights

29 Aug 2026

Donite Plastics appoints Des Hassett as General Manager
Des Hassett
Donite Plastics appoints Des Hassett as General Manager
Experienced manufacturing professional Des Hassett, has been appointed General Manager for Donite Plastics, based at their Saintfield facility in County Down, Northern Ireland, to lead operations and enhance productivity.
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
ADS Charity Cycle
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
Industry riders covered 334 miles from Belfast to Bristol in support of Combat Stress, O2e and Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
Inside Babcock’s plans to turn the Type 31 into a four-ship hybrid task force
Babcock ARMOR Force four ship formation
Inside Babcock’s plans to turn the Type 31 into a four-ship hybrid task force
Babcock’s ARMOR Force would combine a Type 31 command ship with large uncrewed vessels carrying modular weapons and sensors. Sir Nick Hine says the technology has finally caught up with the concept.
Defence Insights

30 Aug 2026

ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
ADS Charity Cycle
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
Industry riders covered 334 miles from Belfast to Bristol in support of Combat Stress, O2e and Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
Scottish space tech to power self-consuming rocket engine
Alpha Impulsion
Scottish space tech to power self-consuming rocket engine
Aurora Avionics is to supply crucial electronic systems that will deliver key electrical power functions for a pioneering new rocket engine, that aims to cut propulsion costs and support next-generation spacecraft.
Space

27 Aug 2026

STFC reveals latest Ernest Rutherford Fellows
space nebula
STFC reveals latest Ernest Rutherford Fellows
Backed by an investment of £6 million, seven early-career physicists have been awarded Ernest Rutherford Fellowship’s by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), supporting research, from the search for dark matter to the physics of black holes.
Space

25 Aug 2026

Metropolitan Police Force expands its fleet of crime-fighting e-bikes
Met Sur-Ron eBikes at New Scotland Yard
Metropolitan Police Force expands its fleet of crime-fighting e-bikes
As it continues to address the challenge posed by criminals using e-bikes and mopeds to commit crime and evade the law, the Metropolitan Police Force has substantially increased its own fleet of Sur-Ron e-bikes, to tackle the perpetrators.
Security

31 Aug 2026

ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
ADS Charity Cycle
ADS cyclists battle crashes, climbs and forest fires to raise over £5,000
Industry riders covered 334 miles from Belfast to Bristol in support of Combat Stress, O2e and Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
ZeroUSV unveils first of its new Oceanus17 USV
Oceanus17 class of USV
ZeroUSV unveils first of its new Oceanus17 USV
ZeroUSV’s brand new Oceanus17 class of unmanned surface vessel (USV) has been unveiled, officially named The Lady of the Lake, marking a key advance in the development of British autonomous maritime capabilities.
Defence Security

28 Aug 2026