ELKHART -- Officials gathered at ThermoDyne in Elkhart this morning to unveil the Mail Defender, a machine that could be used to thwart bioterrorism attacks.

The Mail Defender zaps the letters, documents and small boxes sent through the postal system with ultraviolet, microwave and high frequency energy which neutralizes dangerous pathogens. However, the mail itself is not burned and remains intact.

"It's the simplest way," said U.S. Rep. Mark Souder, R-3rd. "Whack it out then you can figure out later what was trying to kill you."

BioDefense Corp. called upon ThermoDyne to develop the insulation and design the system to use the material in the Mail Defender. The two companies are still finalizing a partnership agreement but John Meyer, BioDefense president, is confident the Boston corporation will be doing business in Elkhart for a "long, long time."

BioDefense is counting on business from a 2003 presidential order that goes into effect today and mandates all federal buildings be protected against bioterrorism attacks. The Mail Defender is the only mail sterilizer that uses conventional technology to kill such pathogens like Anthrax spores and smallpox in-house, BioDefense officials said. Currently, mail has to be sent elsewhere for such processing, which can delay the delivery and potentially destroy the mail.

The Mail Defender machines cost about $89,000 each and are being used in some federal buildings. BioDefense officials foresee the project generating $72 billion in revenue if the Mail Defender goes into all 9,000 federal buildings. For Elkhart, a demand for the machine could create hundreds of new jobs at ThermoDyne.

The BioDefense project was nothing new for ThermoDyne. For nine years the Elkhart company has created insulation for large corporations as well as the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy which, in turn, have used the ThermoDyne product on such things as jet engines, fuel cells on submarines, solar collectors and flight data recorders.