Tempe company one of four selected to build border wall prototype

PHOENIX — The Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that four companies had been selected to build a border wall prototype between the United States and Mexico.

One of those companies is based in Tempe.

It was unclear what role DBA Fisher Industries would play in the prototype or what set its design apart from other submissions.

The other companies were based in Alabama, Texas and Mississippi, according to

The Washington Post said each company received a contract worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $450,000.

“Today we mark a significant milestone,” said Ronald Vitiello, acting deputy commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “This is the first tangible result of the action planning that has gone on. This is the use of the resources we had available for this year.”

The prototypes will be built in San Diego, Calif.

Sensor technology from Scottsdale-based DarkPulse Technologies was being tested by the federal government as a possible addition to the wall.

The border wall was one of President Donald Trump’s key campaign promises. In January, he signed an executive order to begin construction on the wall within months.

During a speech in Phoenix last week, he threatened to shut down the federal government if Congress failed to provide funding for the wall in next year’s budget.

U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake and U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, who are both Republicans, have said the idea of a border wall fight shutting down the federal government was not what Americans wanted.