Anti-traffic jam firm grows globally

MANATEE COUNTY — A local company that developed a portable barrier system designed to conceal roadside accidents, SRN Inc., recently signed two deals with distributors for international expansion.

Manatee County-based SRN signed partnership agreements with Crime Scene Investigation Equipment Ltd. in the United Kingdom and Hamisco Industrial Sales Inc. in Canada, according to a release. Carl Cannova, former president and CEO of Palmetto-based Sysco Food Services-West Coast Florida, co-founded SRN in 2011.

The companies will sell the SRN1000, a privacy screen and barrier that protects victims of accidents and their families from prying eyes. The SRN1000 is sold domestically also, in at least 27 states, and has been used for emergency management, crime scene investigation, military operations, disaster relief and traffic and crowd control. Clients include law enforcement agencies, first responders, government agencies, medical examiners, hospitals, hotels and arenas.

Crime Scene Investigation Equipment, in business since 1989, supplies and supports more than 1,000 products, the release states. “I have seen a few barrier systems over the years, but I liked the simplicity of SRN Inc.'s well-constructed model,” Crime Scene Investigation Equipment sales director Grahame Sandling says in the statement.

Paul Hamilton, president of Hamisco Industrial Sales, also believes in the SRN1000. “The SRN products are an invention that fills a void for privacy,” Hamilton says in the statement. “With today's social media streams so readily available, privacy is certainly a concern of many.”

The SRN1000 uses a series of reflective lights and magnets to create a barrier that is 6.5 feet tall and 12 feet wide. It weighs about 60 pounds and fits into a wheeled carrying case about the size of a typical golf bag.

SRN hopes for more global sales in the near future: Its products will be displayed at upcoming international trade shows, one in Dubai later in March and another in Canada in April.