Big Bang Boom Solutions Private Ltd (BBBS), the Chennai based defence start-up, is at a advance stage of talks for export of cyber security solutions and anti-drone systems to seven African nations and a United Kingdom (UK) based company.
“Of that, the first global order may happen in this quarter itself, Dr R Shivaraman, Director and CTO, BBBS told businessline. Overall we are engaged with a dozen strategic nations of African -- such as Kenya, Mozambique, Alzeria, Tanzania and Nigeria -- to export our products to them.
The BBS Director said last week they hosted at their Chennai facility representatives from the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC), Republic of Mozambique, who reached out to the start-up for tackling the growing menace of kidnappings in their the country.
“The visiting dignitaries spent one week with us and were impressed with the live demonstrations of BBBS cybersecurity solutions and intelligence gathering products,” Shivaraman stated while hoping to get large volume orders from the African nation to buy their indigenously developed technology.
The BBS is also looking to expand it business in the UK and Europe which is in line with government’s thrust on exports of defence products.
“Our start-up’s negotiations with a company in the UK is progressing well and we hope to clinch the deal in the quarter four of this financial year,” Shivaraman informed. The talks are to export see through armour systems for situational awareness for tanks, he added.
Multiple opportunities
In the recent past, the BBS, the 7-time iDEX winner, was part of the different Ministry of Defence (MoD) delegations that travelled to various countries in Africa for showcasing anti-drone defence system and cyber security solutions to them. The exposure has helped the start-up to convert some of the interests exhibited by African countries into possible deals.
The global opportunities the BBS intends to exploit now rides on the recent largest defence contract ever awarded to them under the prestigious iDex programme. It had secured a 210 crore contract from the Indian Army and Indian Air Force for counter drone systems.
The company is closely working with the Indian armed forces, with the rollout of sophisticated software across the various platforms of the Indian Army. The BBS said it’s offering a suite of software and cybersecurity products including indigenous IMSI Catcher and lawful interception products.
Of the iDex challenges won, the start-up said it has successfully completed three of them in diverse field of drones, advanced chemical engineering, computer vision and cyber security.