Otopeni Airport security, a $10m deal

Two security companies, UTI Group (Romania) and Magal Security System (Israel) are bidding for building a state-of-the-art security system at the Bucharest Otopeni International Airport, a $10 million deal according to estimates.
“September 11 has obviously forced us to look for state-of-the-art security systems and tighter security on airports. The contract is worth $10 million,” Miron Mitrea, minister of Public Works, Transports and Housing said on Wednesday.
“Magal is the company that has built and operates a perimetric security system on the Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel-Aviv, while UTI Group is one of the leaders of this industry in Romania,” Mitrea said when presenting the two companies engaged in competition. This is a major contract for the market of security systems designed for companies and institutions, which is estimated at some $20 million a year.
UTI Group took part in both development stages of the Otopeni Airport and carried out works on the airport in Iasi, the company representatives say.
Operating on the security systems market ever since 1991, UTI Group is an integrated security group, dealing in IT and security solutions and equipment. The group that posted $38 million turnover last year is controlled by Tiberiu Urdareanu, son of a retired army general. The company has developed security systems for Bancorex, Banca Comerciala Romana (Romanian Commercial Bank – BCR), the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant and the Finance Ministry.
Israel-based Magal Security System Ltd, listed on NASDAQ posted $29.6 million revenues for the first nine months of this year. Its products are used in 70 countries and the company has subsidiaries in the US, Canada, UK, Germany, Mexico and an office in China. Revenues in fiscal year 2001 amounted to $41 million, with $3.2 million in net profit.