TEXTILE INNOVATIONS

TEXTILE INNOVATIONS

Picture2Textiles are not considered by many as directly related to what is defined as military equipment. But textiles are far more then military uniforms. Textiles are currently the basis for many innovative types of military gear that help the infantry soldier to perform his tasks under the harshest conditions.

And that of course makes the customers to be very demanding. Personal protective equipment for military personnel is needed during non-combat, combat and emergency operations and the demand is growing as weapons become more lethal.  The primary use of textiles among military clients is ballistic protection that has a minor effect on the soldier’s mobility.

But, protection from direct hits is not enough. The gear must have properties that make it resistance to “Hostile effects” like the sun, water, abrasion, oil and fuel. The protection gear based on textiles must keep its properties until it is called to protect the soldiers wearing it. This is not easy to achieve and only a limited number of manufacturers know how to deal with the challenge.
But the normal everyday wear and tear threats are secondary to the main mission of military textiles – to protect the soldier.

The main threats to military personnel are fragmenting projectiles rather than bullets. The projectiles originate from grenades, mortars, artillery shells, mines and improvised explosive weapons. The other threats are low velocity bullets from handguns and high velocity bullets from rifles and machine guns.

As mentioned above, it’s hard to think about textiles as related to what is defined as military equipment. This concept changes when you go to the leading manufacturers and see the degree of innovation put into their products.

They are not always “obvious” as electronic systems or modern assault rifles, but when you look closely at a modern army like the Israeli defense forces (IDF), the picture becomes more focused.

The close connections between the IDF and the country’s defense industries have resulted in many unique products. In the field of military textiles this happened to a surprising degree.

The major player in this industry in Israel is Rabintex which is now part of the DFNS group. This company, designs, manufactures innovative ballistic and blast protection equipment, as well as comprehensive engineering solutions for mobility and modifications of tactical combat vehicles.

The company is a major supplier for military, homeland security and law enforcement forces across the globe. The core product lines in this area include a variety of combat proven solutions – ballistic helmets, bullet-proof vests, advanced armored plates, ballistic shields and visors. Prior to delivery, products undergo the most stringent testing process including ballistic tests in the company’s ballistic laboratory.

The new vests that were designed by the company are used for carrying combat equipment. These vests are made of dry Kevlar and are capable of stopping fragments created by explosives of different types. The vest itself weighs 4.5 kg but when the soldier starts to pin all kinds of equipment on it , the weight increases. The company had changed the design of the advanced vests. Instead of putting the weight on the shoulders it is now sitting on his waist. In such way, a combat soldier can carry 60 kgs on top of the vest’s weight for periods of up to 72 hours.

A helmet may seem to be a simple item, but in fact it is one of the trickiest one to develop.

Rabintex is one of the world’s leading helmet producers and the sole or leading supplier of helmets to many defense forces around the world. Based on close relationships and feedback from operational fighting and law enforcement units around the globe, the helmets are developed to meet the actual needs of the users and these are being updated constantly.

The main challenges when designing a combat helmet are low weight, high ballistic performance, High fragmentation performance, Great comfort and stability, flexible sizing, blast wave performance and facial protection.

Studying reports from recent and current war zones in addition to the feedback it has from the IDF indicate the conclusions that most of the current helmets in use are too heavy and not comfortable for long duration of fighting and that the add-on systems like night goggles put “impossible” weight on the soldier’s head.

Kevlar molding is the basis for almost all new designs of combat helmets. The company says that a good helmet should protect the soldier’s head from impact and blast. It learned that adding 100 grams to the helmet weight, cuts the time the user can use the helmet, by half.

The outer shell of the helmets weighs 970-1000 grams, but with all the other parts, the total helmet weight can reach 1400 grams. The effort is to decrease the weight of the outer shell by 170 grams but this is not simple.

Another effort of Rabintex is connecting to one of the main threats to soldiers in many of the current combat zones – the improvised explosive devices (IED’s). These homemade devices have many effects on the soldier’s body but one that is very deadly in many cases is the amplification of the blast wave when it enters the gap that exists between the helmet and the soldier’s head. The research performed in close cooperation with the IDF may find a solution but the company and the IDF say that the problem is very complex.

All above mentioned technologies are developed and designed with military budgets and according the military requirements, but the migration of these technologies and capabilities to the first responder’s world is swift (SWAT teams, PSBD Units, …)

Picture2Textiles are not considered by many as directly related to what is defined as military equipment. But textiles are far more then military uniforms. Textiles are currently the basis for many innovative types of military gear that help the infantry soldier to perform his tasks under the harshest conditions.

And that of course makes the customers to be very demanding. Personal protective equipment for military personnel is needed during non-combat, combat and emergency operations and the demand is growing as weapons become more lethal.  The primary use of textiles among military clients is ballistic protection that has a minor effect on the soldier’s mobility.

But, protection from direct hits is not enough. The gear must have properties that make it resistance to “Hostile effects” like the sun, water, abrasion, oil and fuel. The protection gear based on textiles must keep its properties until it is called to protect the soldiers wearing it. This is not easy to achieve and only a limited number of manufacturers know how to deal with the challenge.
But the normal everyday wear and tear threats are secondary to the main mission of military textiles – to protect the soldier.

The main threats to military personnel are fragmenting projectiles rather than bullets. The projectiles originate from grenades, mortars, artillery shells, mines and improvised explosive weapons. The other threats are low velocity bullets from handguns and high velocity bullets from rifles and machine guns.

As mentioned above, it’s hard to think about textiles as related to what is defined as military equipment. This concept changes when you go to the leading manufacturers and see the degree of innovation put into their products.

They are not always “obvious” as electronic systems or modern assault rifles, but when you look closely at a modern army like the Israeli defense forces (IDF), the picture becomes more focused.

The close connections between the IDF and the country’s defense industries have resulted in many unique products. In the field of military textiles this happened to a surprising degree.

The major player in this industry in Israel is Rabintex which is now part of the DFNS group. This company, designs, manufactures innovative ballistic and blast protection equipment, as well as comprehensive engineering solutions for mobility and modifications of tactical combat vehicles.

The company is a major supplier for military, homeland security and law enforcement forces across the globe. The core product lines in this area include a variety of combat proven solutions – ballistic helmets, bullet-proof vests, advanced armored plates, ballistic shields and visors. Prior to delivery, products undergo the most stringent testing process including ballistic tests in the company’s ballistic laboratory.

The new vests that were designed by the company are used for carrying combat equipment. These vests are made of dry Kevlar and are capable of stopping fragments created by explosives of different types. The vest itself weighs 4.5 kg but when the soldier starts to pin all kinds of equipment on it , the weight increases. The company had changed the design of the advanced vests. Instead of putting the weight on the shoulders it is now sitting on his waist. In such way, a combat soldier can carry 60 kgs on top of the vest’s weight for periods of up to 72 hours.

A helmet may seem to be a simple item, but in fact it is one of the trickiest one to develop.

Rabintex is one of the world’s leading helmet producers and the sole or leading supplier of helmets to many defense forces around the world. Based on close relationships and feedback from operational fighting and law enforcement units around the globe, the helmets are developed to meet the actual needs of the users and these are being updated constantly.

The main challenges when designing a combat helmet are low weight, high ballistic performance, High fragmentation performance, Great comfort and stability, flexible sizing, blast wave performance and facial protection.

Studying reports from recent and current war zones in addition to the feedback it has from the IDF indicate the conclusions that most of the current helmets in use are too heavy and not comfortable for long duration of fighting and that the add-on systems like night goggles put “impossible” weight on the soldier’s head.

Kevlar molding is the basis for almost all new designs of combat helmets. The company says that a good helmet should protect the soldier’s head from impact and blast. It learned that adding 100 grams to the helmet weight, cuts the time the user can use the helmet, by half.

The outer shell of the helmets weighs 970-1000 grams, but with all the other parts, the total helmet weight can reach 1400 grams. The effort is to decrease the weight of the outer shell by 170 grams but this is not simple.

Another effort of Rabintex is connecting to one of the main threats to soldiers in many of the current combat zones – the improvised explosive devices (IED’s). These homemade devices have many effects on the soldier’s body but one that is very deadly in many cases is the amplification of the blast wave when it enters the gap that exists between the helmet and the soldier’s head. The research performed in close cooperation with the IDF may find a solution but the company and the IDF say that the problem is very complex.

All above mentioned technologies are developed and designed with military budgets and according the military requirements, but the migration of these technologies and capabilities to the first responder’s world is swift (SWAT teams, PSBD Units, …)