At HTX Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosives (CBRNE) laboratory at Woodlands Checkpoint, vehicles are screened for security-sensitive substances ranging from chemical agents to drugs. Drivers, for one, are profiled and some are caught for taking methamphetamine or Ice to keep them awake and alert. Vehicles and cargo are also screened for risks as varied as food pathogens in vegetables to excessive radiation levels in car parts. The Woodlands Analytical Laboratory is part of a network of labs across the various checkpoints helping to detect and investigate threats. It able to analyse unknown powder form using its Lab-On-Chip technology. In under three hours, the white powder was screened for biological warfare agents such as anthrax, plague, tularemia, smallpox and ricin simultaneously. To further boost border security, a new lab at Changi Airfreight Centre will be built and be operational by 2023, to support Changi Airport and air cargo checkpoints. Also in the pipeline are more such facilities at the future Tuas Mega Port and Changi Airport’s T5.... Continue Reading