DuPont [DD] said Friday it launched Kevlarr XP(tm) for Hard Armor to provide extra protection and extra performance in ballistic applications.
The product is initially targeted for military and police helmets, and tactical plates used in ballistic protective vests.
An Advanced Combat Helmet (ACH) used by the U.S. military today can weigh almost four pounds, the company said. DuPont(tm) Kevlarr XP(tm) for Hard Armor provides a half-pound reduction in weight, reducing some of the load and stress on soldiers and Marines moving in harsh environments.
For other helmet and tactical plate designs, Kevlarr XP(tm) for Hard Armor can offer 20-percent higher ballistic performance and increased protection, without sacrificing other performance requirements, the company said.
“DuPont is committed to protecting people around the world through science-based innovations,” said Thomas Powell, president– DuPont Protection Technologies. “The U.S. military was looking for a lighter weight helmet option and DuPont developed this new product in less than a year. Using our integrated science and more than 40 years of experience, we were able to offer a solution that not only addresses the military’s needs to ‘lighten the load,’ but also to better protect the lives of those who protect us.”
Developed under the Kevlarr XP(tm) platform, the increased ballistic protection offered by Kevlarr XP(tm) for Hard Armor makes the new system usable in a variety of ballistic applications, including but not limited to military, law enforcement and homeland security segments.
The new product was developed at DuPont’s Armor Technology Center in Wilmington, Del. The patent-pending Kevlarr XP(tm) for Hard Armor is a combination of DuPont(tm) Kevlarr KM2 Plus fiber and a new thermoplastic resin that creates an entire matrix system, improving upon the original Kevlarr technology.
Kevlarr KM2 Plus, a precursor to Kevlarr XP(tm) for hard armor, will be produced at DuPont’s new $500 million Kevlarr facility currently under construction near Charleston, S.C. The site, which is expected to be fully operational by the beginning of 2012, will produce Kevlarr fibers for the military, law enforcement and other industrial applications, and will help increase worldwide production of Kevlarr by 25 percent.
Find out more at the DuPont booth 2933.