A Westbrook-based company is slated to get $3 million in federal money to help develop an oil viscosity sensor for Army helicopters.

Sen. Susan Collins said last week that BiODE, located on Larrabee Road, was included in the list of companies due to receive money as part of the 2006 defense appropriations bill recently passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill must still be approved by both the House and Senate and signed by the president before BiODE would receive any money.

Karem Durdag, BiODE chief executive officer, said assuming the appropriations bill is signed into law without any changes, the company would be using the federal money to develop and manufacture a sensor to determine the condition of oil in the gearboxes of Army helicopters. “We’re very excited about it,” he said.

Durdag said oil tends to degrade quicker in hot climates, and the new sensor will allow the Army to immediately determine the condition of a helicopter’s oil to make sure it is in proper flying condition before sending it out on a mission.

Once the money is approved, Durdag said he expects it will take about three years to engineer and manufacture the sensor. He said all of the work on the project would be done in Maine.

In a written statement, Collins said the BiODE project is part of more than $1 billion worth of projects benefiting Maine as part of the 2006 appropriations bill. “These projects are valuable to our national defense needs,” Collins said. “I am pleased that my colleagues have recognized the incredible contributions that the companies and employees throughout Maine have made to our military and to our nation’s security.”