thedrifter
01-24-06, 08:42 AM
January 30, 2006
Rock-hard, feather-light
Systems Command to evaluate ideas for a new-generation vest
By John Hoellwarth
Times staff writer
The body armor vest you’re wearing could be replaced next summer. And if Marine officials have their way, it’ll be lighter, stronger and more comfortable.
Using the capabilities of the current Interceptor outer tactical vest as a base line, officials at Marine Corps Systems Command want the body armor industry to develop a “new generation” of vests from the ground up that may look and feel a lot different than what you’re wearing.
As long as the new vest enhances Marines’ ability to carry heavy loads, stop speeding bullets and leap through tall windows in a single bound, SysCom said manufacturers will decide the actual design.
Whether the new vest will fasten in the front, back or sides — by button, snap, Velcro or magnet — will be left entirely up to the company that pitches the most capable prototype, said Daniel Fitzgerald, infantry combat equipment program manager for SysCom, based in Quantico, Va.
It’s too early in the game to predict how the new vest will look; right now, SysCom officials are focusing on how they want it to perform. But Col. Shawn Reinwald, director of SysCom’s combat equipment and support systems, envisions a physical design that adds a few more bells and whistles, including a pouch specifically tailored and waterproofed for the personal radios that small unit leaders wear on their shoulders.
Fitzgerald said the new vest design will take numerous “human factors” into consideration. The handle strap behind your head will need to bear the weight of a Marine being dragged to a covered position. The fit of the vest will need to allow proper range of motion for Marines who may find themselves driving a truck, climbing a wall or crawling through a window. The new gear will need to allow Marines to wear magazine pouches and canteens without first attaching them to an additional outer vest.
Last November, SysCom posted a request on the Internet for feedback from manufacturers — a way to tell manufacturers what the Corps would like and for manufacturers to find out how close to that ideal current technology will allow them to get.
On Dec. 20, SysCom met with industry representatives from about 50 companies at a conference in Alexandria, Va., to discuss this balance between ideal capabilities and realistic expectations.
Cutting-edge work
Reinwald said that the competition alone “will generate a lot of innovations, a lot of action”; profits can be substantial in this multibillion-dollar industry.
Already, he said, “we’re working on an advanced polymer; we’re working on nanotechnology; we’re working on new fibers, new backings, that can make [gear] lighter, smaller.”
Now is a good time to be doing it. Since November, the Corps has been rushing sets of side Small Arms Protective Inserts to be added to the vest in the war zone. That adds 7 pounds to the vest, which is already carrying heavier enhanced SAPI plates in the front and back — not to mention the magazine pouches and other accessories.
When the Corps introduced the outer tactical vest in the late 1990s, it was looking to come up with a more advanced version in five years. But “in the last three years, it’s been, ‘Get it to me now,’” Reinwald said.
Fitzgerald said the next step will be to evaluate the industry feedback, perhaps modify the vest’s intended specifications and then go back to companies with a request that they pitch prototypes for testing. He said the entire procurement process will take about 18 months from the date companies begin to submit their proposals.
Mobility counts
“We know the more comfortable we make the vest and the more mobility we give the Marine, the higher the survivability will be,” Reinwald said. “It’s very similar to kids and bicycle helmets. If you give them something that’s comfortable, if you give them something that’s cool to wear, they’re going to wear it more.”
For personnel deployed to U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility, chiefly the Middle East, wearing the outer tactical vest is mandatory.
Marines have taken to carrying their pistol holsters, ammo pouches and canteens by attaching straps directly to the mesh loopholes sewn onto the current body armor, Reinwald said.
He said officials added the weave to the vest based on immediate feedback after the vest was fielded without it.
Marines didn’t want to wear the additional load-bearing harness; instead they wanted to attach items directly to the vest.
The Corps has been issuing Marines an additional load-carrying layer to wear over their body armor since the flak jacket debuted 20 years ago, Reinwald said.
The new one will be designed to carry the load without the extra layer, he said.
Ellie
Rock-hard, feather-light
Systems Command to evaluate ideas for a new-generation vest
By John Hoellwarth
Times staff writer
The body armor vest you’re wearing could be replaced next summer. And if Marine officials have their way, it’ll be lighter, stronger and more comfortable.
Using the capabilities of the current Interceptor outer tactical vest as a base line, officials at Marine Corps Systems Command want the body armor industry to develop a “new generation” of vests from the ground up that may look and feel a lot different than what you’re wearing.
As long as the new vest enhances Marines’ ability to carry heavy loads, stop speeding bullets and leap through tall windows in a single bound, SysCom said manufacturers will decide the actual design.
Whether the new vest will fasten in the front, back or sides — by button, snap, Velcro or magnet — will be left entirely up to the company that pitches the most capable prototype, said Daniel Fitzgerald, infantry combat equipment program manager for SysCom, based in Quantico, Va.
It’s too early in the game to predict how the new vest will look; right now, SysCom officials are focusing on how they want it to perform. But Col. Shawn Reinwald, director of SysCom’s combat equipment and support systems, envisions a physical design that adds a few more bells and whistles, including a pouch specifically tailored and waterproofed for the personal radios that small unit leaders wear on their shoulders.
Fitzgerald said the new vest design will take numerous “human factors” into consideration. The handle strap behind your head will need to bear the weight of a Marine being dragged to a covered position. The fit of the vest will need to allow proper range of motion for Marines who may find themselves driving a truck, climbing a wall or crawling through a window. The new gear will need to allow Marines to wear magazine pouches and canteens without first attaching them to an additional outer vest.
Last November, SysCom posted a request on the Internet for feedback from manufacturers — a way to tell manufacturers what the Corps would like and for manufacturers to find out how close to that ideal current technology will allow them to get.
On Dec. 20, SysCom met with industry representatives from about 50 companies at a conference in Alexandria, Va., to discuss this balance between ideal capabilities and realistic expectations.
Cutting-edge work
Reinwald said that the competition alone “will generate a lot of innovations, a lot of action”; profits can be substantial in this multibillion-dollar industry.
Already, he said, “we’re working on an advanced polymer; we’re working on nanotechnology; we’re working on new fibers, new backings, that can make [gear] lighter, smaller.”
Now is a good time to be doing it. Since November, the Corps has been rushing sets of side Small Arms Protective Inserts to be added to the vest in the war zone. That adds 7 pounds to the vest, which is already carrying heavier enhanced SAPI plates in the front and back — not to mention the magazine pouches and other accessories.
When the Corps introduced the outer tactical vest in the late 1990s, it was looking to come up with a more advanced version in five years. But “in the last three years, it’s been, ‘Get it to me now,’” Reinwald said.
Fitzgerald said the next step will be to evaluate the industry feedback, perhaps modify the vest’s intended specifications and then go back to companies with a request that they pitch prototypes for testing. He said the entire procurement process will take about 18 months from the date companies begin to submit their proposals.
Mobility counts
“We know the more comfortable we make the vest and the more mobility we give the Marine, the higher the survivability will be,” Reinwald said. “It’s very similar to kids and bicycle helmets. If you give them something that’s comfortable, if you give them something that’s cool to wear, they’re going to wear it more.”
For personnel deployed to U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility, chiefly the Middle East, wearing the outer tactical vest is mandatory.
Marines have taken to carrying their pistol holsters, ammo pouches and canteens by attaching straps directly to the mesh loopholes sewn onto the current body armor, Reinwald said.
He said officials added the weave to the vest based on immediate feedback after the vest was fielded without it.
Marines didn’t want to wear the additional load-bearing harness; instead they wanted to attach items directly to the vest.
The Corps has been issuing Marines an additional load-carrying layer to wear over their body armor since the flak jacket debuted 20 years ago, Reinwald said.
The new one will be designed to carry the load without the extra layer, he said.
Ellie