One of the International Security and Defense Systems (ISDS) group's latest projects is in Honduras producing electronic handcuffs for monitoring prisoners and criminals in home detention. However, this project is not the main activity of the company whose Israeli headquarters are located in the agricultural settlement of Nir Zvi. ISDS’s chief area of activity is providing security for deep sea drilling platforms, civilian nuclear reactors, vessels on international shipping lanes, and other HLS projects.
"There are several stages when supplying oil and gas. First you have to search, drill, and extract," explains Leo Gleser, president and part owner of ISDS. "Then you have to transfer the material to fuel storage tanks and sell it to the end client. We are involved in each stage. Eighty percent of today's oil and gas production is offshore. Mexico's energy deposits, for example, are situated in three main centers 90 miles from the coast."
What can you tell us about the latest technological innovations in energy resource protection?
"The technology is based primarily on command and control systems – not only in security and intelligence domains, but also in emergency situations. Some emergency situations are weather-related, such as 150-200 km/hour hurricane winds. You have to be on top of what's happening because the security system behaves very differently during hurricane season.
Is ISDS interested in protecting the drilling platforms for the gas deposits discovered off Israel's coast?
"We would be very happy to, but we don’t regard Israel as a source of our activity. This is not to depreciate Israel's energy reserves, but we're more interested in the global market. The security here in Israel will have to be very tight."
In the field of nuclear reactors, ISDS has set up fences, monitors, and surveillance devices based on software-integrated systems in Mexico, Brazil, the US, and other countries.
"The Mexican facility is considered the most secure in the world," says Gleser. "The earthquake that ravaged the nuclear reactor in Japan last year woke everyone to the new measures that have to be taken."
Fun in Brazil
Leo Gleser is one of the leading figures in Israel's HLS industry. His pistol collection is truly impressive, and his Spanish accent gives away his Argentine origins. He makes no secret of the fact that he's especially fond of doing business (and spending time) in Latin American countries.
Lately, he's been very active in Brazil, competing for security tenders for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Games and 2016 Olympic Games (ISDS is a partner in the Qylatron system that will simultaneously scan five handbags at the entranceway to each of the World Cup stadiums).
"In Brazil, we teamed up with a local company and incorporated various technologies, including some from Israel," says Gleser. "Brazil has started upgrading its border security and infrastructure protection; its transportation systems, subways, and communication networks will all be modernized. This is just part of the big project in Brazil. The Olympic Games and FIFA World Cup are only the start. You have to reach certain standards in order to host the games, but what really generates Brazil's economic growth are its energy assets of oil and gas.
"Brazil's biggest project is electricity production through the exploitation of the Amazon's waters that border Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. We planned the entire security layout for this project.
"I love being in South America. I think it's the most pleasant region in the world to do business, but this doesn’t stop us from working in China, India, Kenya, and South Africa, and being involved in projects in Australia, Europe, and many other countries."