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18 Apr 2007  -  United States

S-2 Glass® reinforcement continues growth - as new armor applications emerge

New applications for composite armor systems in EOD suits and vehicles are continuing to drive the growth of S-2 Glass® reinforcements from AGY. The company said it shipped a record amount of the material in 2006 and expects to surpass that record in 2007.

New applications recently introduced or announced include:
• Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) suits with an overlapping plate design that is more comfortable and more flexible, allowing the wearer to move easily and focus on the threat
• A new CAVCAT vehicle platform that meets higher threat levels including armor-piercing projectiles

Both of the new applications were developed by NP Aerospace Ltd., Coventry, UK, a long-time manufacturer of body armor and security vehicles.

“These new applications are successful in part because of the performance contribution of S 2 Glass reinforcements,” said Drew Walker, AGY Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

EOD suit
With the unfortunate spread of terrorism and increased use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), EOD suits are seeing more frequent use, prompting demand for designs that are more comfortable and more flexible, allowing the wearer to move easily and focus on the threat.

NP Aerospace addressed that need and came up with an answer that is both very old and very new. The company combined an overlapping plate design that evolved about 50 million years ago with today’s S-2 Glass reinforcements and HJ1 Armor System to develop the most comfortable and flexible EOD suit on the market.

NP Managing Director Roger Medwell says the new suit and its three-piece telescoping or overlapping frontal plate system is very flexible and articulates well, allowing the operator the freedom of movement and dexterity to quickly get in position to dispose of the IED.

The outer surface of the shell plates is made using the HJ1 Armor System. Behind that rugged surface are layers of closed-cell foam and aramid fiber. The entire plate structure absorbs blast energy while the HJ1 Armor System is intended to slow and deform bomb fragments. The aramid fabric performs a catching function.

CAVCAT vehicle
In developing their new CAVCAT vehicle platform NP made a host of design changes but stayed with their core ballistic protection system – CAMAC® Lightweight Composite Armor incorporating S 2 Glass reinforcements.

According to Medwell, as the company used more glass-reinforced armor to upgrade the protection level of the new vehicles, the benefits of using high performance glass actually increased.

“When we started using high performance glass-reinforced composites the glass armor was about half the weight of a steel solution,” said Medwell. “Now, as we upgrade our designs to meet National Institute of Justice (NIJ) threat levels 5, 6 and 7, the ratio is even better.”

Source : AGY