A HI-TECH security firm specialising in finger-print recognition technology has quadrupled sales since the September 11 terrorist attack.

Sales manager Peter Chap-man said his clients aren't necessarily directly concerned about terrorist attack.

But he said there has been a general heightened awareness about security issues in the last 12 months.

In the last few months TSSI's finger-print entry systems have been installed by companies working at UK airports.

They have also been sold to a variety of telecoms clients and companies involved with sensitive laboratory procedures

TSSI is the only company in the UK developing this sort of technology.

It has been based in Groundwell Industrial Estate, Swindon, for the last 10 years and currently employs 52 staff there.

The company's top-selling finger-print recognition device costs about £1,500 per item to install.

It works by making employees carry access cards with their own finger-print information on.

To gain access to restricted areas they must not only use the entry card but put their finger-print on a scanner to see if it matches up with information held on the card.

TSSI has also developed technology which can identify people by scanning their faces.

Sales manager Peter Chap-man said: "Across the spectrum people are become more aware about security issues."

Although TSSI equipment has been introduced to airports to improve security on the staff side he said employing it to vet passengers raises social and political issues.

In any case, he said, finger print or face recognition security measures probably would not have prevented the September 11 hijackings.

Development manager Ed White said: "None of the terrorists had forged passports.

"They were not trying to pass themselves off as anyone else they were living quite openly in the societies they were in.

"They passed openly through airports and didn't carry what were then generally regarded as weapons up until then you could buy pen-knives on airplanes."

The company also develops anti-forgery technology for documents.

It recently landed a huge contract to provide documentation and verification systems for Nigeria's estimated one million green card foreign workers.