- Unique proprietary technology meeting growing and compelling global need
- HighCom Security division is the first company in the world to achieve BA 9000 certification
- Strong connections and sales history with DOD and DHS, as well as with law enforcement and commercial entities around the world
The rising incidence of terrorist attacks around the world is not being taken lying down. America’s police departments have taken note and are gearing up, literally, to defend the homeland. To do so, to protect their officers, they are relying increasingly on body armor and blast protection products, like those from BlastGard International, Inc. (OTC: BLGA). The Florida-headquartered company has developed a line of products to protect people and property from explosive blasts. It also provides products that offer protection from projectiles. BlastGard’s protective gear includes shields, helmets, vests and plates, which provide police with the protective gear they need to do their jobs.
With an estimated 750,000 police officers, America’s 17,000 law enforcement agencies require a lot of body armor, which, typically, has a life cycle of about five years. Combining this statistic with an average 10 percent attrition rate in law enforcement (about one in 10 officers leave every year) means that, every year, approximately 30 percent of body armor purchases are repeated. That results in a steady, vibrant market for BlastGard. In July 2014, its HighCom Security division, responsible for body armor, became the first company in the world to achieve BA 9000 certification. BA 9000, released in January 2012, extends ISO 9001 requirements to manufacturers of body armor vests for federal, state, local, tribal law enforcement and corrections bodies.
BlastGard’s HighCom Security business unit is a leader in advanced ballistic armor manufacturing. Operating from a 32,865 square foot manufacturing and distribution facility located in Columbus, Ohio, the division can handle large scale, time-sensitive global supply needs. Directed from the logistics center in Florida, the unit serves customers in North America, such as the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security, local law enforcement agencies, correctional facilities, municipal authorities and large corporations, as well as others throughout the world. Past sales have been to Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.
BlastGard’s body armor range is wide. It includes Type IIA body armor, which offers basic protection against smaller caliber handgun threats; Type II body armor, which provides protection against larger handguns, including many common smaller caliber pistols with standard pressure ammunition and against many revolvers; Type IIIA body armor, which can resist heavy pistol calibers including most law enforcement ammunition and many higher powered revolvers, and Type III and IV body armor, which provides protection against rifle rounds, generally only used in tactical situations.
BlastGard expects that, as police departments become more militarized, demand for its products and services will grow. As threats of all kinds multiply, there is mounting evidence of the emergence of a new kind of police officer, the Warrior Cop, resulting from the integration of tactical, SWAT, and special operations within the law enforcement environment. This trend is likely to fuel demand for body armor with higher protection levels and lower areal densities and designs that provide more mobility and comfort, including helmets. Areal density gives an indication of the energy absorption capability of the protective material and is computed as the weight of the armored panel in grams per square meter divided by the protection area of the panel.
The BlastGard Defense division offers BlastWrap®, a product that defuses the power of explosions and helps to suppress any fires caused by those explosions. The technology is composed of two integrated flexible films arranged one over the other and joined by a plurality of seams filled with attenuating filler material (volcanic glass bead or other suitable materials) with an extinguishing coating. It works by slowing the dissipation of energy triggered by an explosion, reducing the force of the blast and, consequently, the likelihood of fatalities. BlastGard is not only in the business of providing protection for individuals and property; it’s also in the business of saving lives.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.BlastGardIntl.com
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