Hyde Definition has submitted their PenCottâ„¢ multi-terrain camouflage in response to the US Army’s RFI for a family of camouflage patterns. What we find so interesting about this announcement is that in highly competitive programs such as this, companies vying for a contract tend to keep a lid on their entries until after the trial is well under way. Granted, Hyde Definition had already developed these patterns and they are commercially available, but the actual solicitation has still not been released.
Interestingly, they have also developed a colorway specifically for field equipment as called for in the RFI. It is named PenCott-TECâ„¢ (“Tactical Equipment Camouflageâ€) which you can see in this mockup provided by Hyde Definition.
The team at Hyde Definition has not just been working on camo patterns. Since the beginning of the PenCottâ„¢ program they worked on improved uniform designs. In addition to their family of patterns entry, Hyde Definition also submitted an unsolicited proposal for a Multi-Environment Camouflage Systemâ„¢ (MECSâ„¢) which is based on a two-part system of a Reversible Camouflage Over-Garmentâ„¢ (RECOGâ„¢) and a basic Universal Duty Uniformâ„¢ (UDUâ„¢).
The Reversible-Camouflage-Over-Garment (RECOGâ„¢) provides more flexibility for the Soldier. As you can see in the photo, this new uniform overcomes the greatest weakness of multiple patterns. While they might be perfect in one environment, but stand out like a sore thumb in another. What’s worse, in many areas, the ground scrub might be one color while the trees are yet another. The Soldier can easily adapt his clothing to the micro environment he is operating in and change along with conditions.
The second component is the Universal Duty Uniform™ which is a standard uniform used in stand-alone mode for garrison, utility and general fatigue and admin duties, or as the under-garment (in conjunction with the RECOG™) for field and combat operations. They envision that the UDU™ would be available in two weights (“light†for summer / hot climates and “heavy†for winter / cold climates use) and in two colors (Olive Green for verdant environments and Coyote Brown for arid/semi-arid environments). Sounds a lot like the concept envisioned here.
Tags: Hyde Definition, PenCott