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5.11 Expands Everyday Hero Program with Charitable Donations

Tuesday, May 19th, 2020

Irvine, Calif. (May 18, 2020) – 5.11, Inc. the global innovator of purpose-built apparel, footwear and gear, announced it has expanded its Everyday Hero program to recognize individuals who go above and beyond within their communities by adding a charitable component in light of the events surrounding the global COVID-19 pandemic. 5.11 has produced a limited-edition Everyday Hero t-shirt that will be sold with 100% net proceeds being donated to charities within the first responder community. Additionally, for each Everyday Hero t-shirt purchased, 5.11 will donate a KN-95 mask to a New York City first responder.

As always, civilian and professional #EverydayHeroes can be nominated through 5.11’s social media pages @511Tactical. Purchasers of Everyday Hero t-shirts are encouraged to gift it to the Everyday Hero in their life and post a photo of the person wearing their t-shirt with the tag #EverydayHeroes. T-shirts can be purchased through 5.11’s website. With the purchase of each t-shirt, 5.11 will also donate a KN-95 mask to a first responder in New York City, one of the areas in the United States hit hardest by the COVID-19 outbreak.

“There is so much good happening in the world, and we want to remind people of that. Encouraging and recognizing acts of kindness is imperative to societal stability and global solidarity,” said 5.11’s Vice President of Marketing, Jennifer Glover. “We are all in this together, and being able to support each other and those who serve is an excellent way to channel our energies and efforts. Giving back to the servicemen and women in New York through this initiative makes the gracious act of recognizing our local heroes, just that much more important.”

Everyday Hero T-Shirt with KN-95 Mask

“When the idea for this initiative began, it energized everyone at 5.11 to create and launch a program to give back to all of the first responder categories serving and sacrificing, now more than ever, for our communities,” said 5.11’s CEO, Francisco J. Morales. “5.11’s professional customers are the heart of our business and our nation’s critical infrastructure. For us and all of our customers, it is an honor to support law enforcement, fire, emergency services, and military during this unprecedented time.”

The #EverydayHero digital campaign, originally launched in Fall 2019, will live on 5.11’s social media pages @511Tactical as well as through emails and on the company’s website www.511Tactical.com. Everyday Hero t-shirts to support first responder charities are available for purchase for $14.99.

Posted in Charity, Clothing, COVID-19 Pandemic, Fundraising, Press Release | Comments Off on 5.11 Expands Everyday Hero Program with Charitable Donations

AFRL Adapts PJ Tactics for COVID-19 Monitoring

Sunday, May 17th, 2020

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio – The Air Force Research Laboratory is leveraging tactics from the Air Force pararescue (PJ) community, employing a new tool that can monitor multiple patients’ vital signs, helping to alleviate the lean doctor-to-patient ratio that many medical facilities are facing amidst COVID-19.

“One of the struggles doctors and nurses are having in highly-affected hospitals right now is similar to what PJs deal with—a high ratio of patients assigned to a low ratio of medical personnel,” said Dr. Greg Burnett, Airman-Machine Integration Product Line lead in AFRL. “Add in the contagion element, and our team saw the emergent need to adapt our medical monitoring tool for widespread use so that multiple patients could be cared for remotely.”

So Burnett and his team have been hard at work adapting this agile technology, originally developed for PJs to use down range, for hospitals and other health care facilities so they too can monitor the vitals of more patients.

The solution is a medical monitoring tool called the Battlefield Assisted Trauma Distributed Observation Kit, or BATDOK. The original version of this tool has been under evaluation by military medics for about four years and was deployed operationally about a year ago. Developed in AFRL’s 711th Human Performance Wing, it is a smartphone-based medical information software tool that can take in sensor data for real-time health-status monitoring for multiple patients. The team has made improvements along the way to this Android application with the help of direct feedback from operators down range using the device.

This adapted version, however, removes the combat casualty care aspects of the medical monitoring tool, said Burnett, but still allows for the remote monitoring sharing of patient vitals and secured networked data dissemination. These features can help prepare doctors and nurses as they work to maintain situational awareness over multiple patients—while also working to maintain their own health and safety.

But with this newer, more streamlined vital-monitoring version of BATDOK, the AFRL team will collaborate and receive direct feedback from their new customers—healthcare providers at the Wright-Patterson Medical Center. AFRL began the first of three phases of testing with BATDOK at the base medical center in mid-April.

This first phase involves comparing data of a single patient who has agreed to have vitals monitored using both traditional methods as well as using BATDOK. The time required for each phase is unknown, but each phase will have increased patients and providers.

“Clinical practice guidelines for patients infected with COVID-19, released by the Department of Defense and the Defense Health Agency, strongly recommend continuous oxygen monitoring,” said Dr. Roger Shih, WPMC Internal Medicine director.

Shih said the ability to monitor multiple patients remotely also alleviates the need for medical personnel to change out personal protective equipment (PPE) for individual patient checks.

BATDOK’s tablet interface is user-friendly, Shih explained, and the software is straightforward and intuitive. It allows a single provider to monitor up to two dozen patients with real-time monitoring of their oxygen saturation and pulse.

The BATDOK team’s software development co-leads, 2nd Lt. Matthew Dickinson and 2nd Lt. Corey Mack, discussed how the data moves remotely.

“Monitoring the patients remotely is done through a sensor embedded in the pulse oximeter that is placed on the patient’s finger,” said Dickinson.

Mack added that the sensor transmits vitals remotely to tablets or to workstations that the nurses or other healthcare providers can then monitor.

From a nursing perspective, traditional practice is for the nurses to go to a single location, a telemetry station, to observe the patient’s heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen saturation, explained Maj. Gary Webb, WPMC Medical Surgical Unit flight commander.

But with BATDOK, which is used through an app on a cell phone, Webb explained that nurses can monitor their patients wherever they are on the unit.

“The benefit of this,” Webb said, “is that if an alarm is going off, the nurse can immediately look at the BATDOK app to see which alarm has sounded and address it. It saves much needed time in this situation.”

All-in-all, BATDOK could allow Wright-Patterson Medical Center to rapidly scale up their ability to perform continuous oxygen monitoring for patients infected with COVID-19, while also keeping staff safer and decreasing use of PPE, said Shih.

The AFRL team, some who have family members in the hardest hit areas of this pandemic, are honored to put their skills to good use.

“It means a lot to the BATDOK team to be able to do our part in stemming the tide of the COVID-19 pandemic,” explained Mack. “Working directly with those who need and use the technology we build has always been a driving factor behind the success of BATDOK. So when we heard there was a need during this crisis, we started working on potential solutions.”

Story by Gina Marie Giardina, Air Force Research Laboratory

Photo by Wesley Farnsworth

Posted in Air Force, COVID-19 Pandemic, Guest Post, Medical | 1 Comment »

Speedbox Hand Sanitizer

Wednesday, May 13th, 2020

I’m a big fan of Veteran-owned Speedbox and their signature product. They’ve just recently expanded their offerings with Hand Sanitizer.

This scent free gel hand sanitizer eliminates 99.9% of Bacteria and includes moisturizer. Available in a variety of sizes.

www.speedbox.us/collections/hand-sanitizer

Posted in COVID-19 Pandemic, Medical | Comments Off on Speedbox Hand Sanitizer

Armor Express Remains Open for Business to Support the U.S. Government, Federal and Domestic Law Enforcement Agencies and First Responders

Wednesday, May 13th, 2020

ARLINGTON, VA, May 13, 2020 – Armor Express, a leading manufacturer and distributor of high-performance protective solutions for the Domestic and Federal Law Enforcement markets, Department of Defense and First Responders, announced today new contract awards and delivery orders from the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice.

As part of the Defense Industrial Base Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce, Armor Express has kept its manufacturing facilities open, continuing to deliver high-performance, life-saving body armor systems to the U.S. Department of Defense and its various branches, as well as the domestic and international law enforcement markets. Additionally, over the past two months, demand from the Federal Government has increased, as the Company has received orders from various Federal agencies including Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the U.S. Treasury, among others. And recently, Armor Express was awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract from the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), to produce stab-resistant carriers with NIJ-rated Spike 3 ballistics.

The Company also announced today it has allocated space in both its Eden, NC and Central Lake, MI manufacturing facilities to produce personal protective equipment (PPE) for those in need. Most recently, Armor Express has been supplying protective masks to many of its domestic law enforcement customers, first responders and some local businesses, upon request. If any member of the law enforcement or medical community is in need, please contact a local Armor Express representative for more information.

Jim Henderson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Armor Express stated, “This global pandemic has been unlike anything we have experienced, and we cannot emphasize enough how appreciative we are to all those serving on the frontlines. Our mission to save lives has never held more meaning for Armor Express and our efforts are only achieved with the support of our distribution, supply chain and technology partners. Together, we stand ready to support America’s heroes.”

Posted in Advertiser, Armor, COVID-19 Pandemic, Press Release | Comments Off on Armor Express Remains Open for Business to Support the U.S. Government, Federal and Domestic Law Enforcement Agencies and First Responders

A Variety of Cloth Facemasks are Now Available from Capewell

Tuesday, May 12th, 2020

Capewell Aerial Systems is now manufacturing high-quality, re-useable cloth facemasks. Several of the company’s production lines have been repurposed to fill the burgeoning demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These masks are made from Fire-Retardant Aramid Fabric and are cotton-lined for comfort and breathability. They are fully machine-or-hand-washable and therefore suitable for daily use. Fabric straps with easy-slide closures assure a custom snug fit for any adult user.

Capewell masks are 100% AMERICAN MADE and strictly controlled for quality and durability. They are Berry Amendment Compliant and suitable for most military operations. These Fire Retardant Masks are currently available in two colors, OCP Camo and Coyote.

Additionally, Capewell offers durable, multi-use masks in ripstop nylon/cotton blend fabrics and 100% natural cotton masks in a variety of specialty patterns designed for law enforcement, medical workers, EMS, Coast Guard and anyone who desires an extra measure of protection.

Capewell Facemasks are in stock and ready to ship. Click HERE for more information on all of Capewell’s masks, or contact CAPEWELL SALES for pricing/ordering.

Posted in COVID-19 Pandemic, Press Release | Comments Off on A Variety of Cloth Facemasks are Now Available from Capewell

DAF ACT Contracting Executes N95 Mask Production for DoD

Tuesday, May 12th, 2020

The Department of the Air Force’s Acquisition COVID-19 Task Force (DAF-ACT) executed a $126 million contract on May 1 for expanded production of N95 masks—26 million per month—starting in October. The contract, awarded to 3M, will increase the supply chain of N95 masks and resupply the Strategic National Stockpile following increased demand due to COVID-19.

Coordinated through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Joint Acquisition Task Force (JATF), and funded through the CARES Act, the contract increases N95 mask production by at least 312 million within the next twelve months.

A team of contracting officers at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, finalized the deal.

“As an Air Force contracting professional, it’s always a great feeling when you are able to help secure a critical investment in U.S. manufacturing capacity for items that will serve a greater good,” said Nathan Shrider, AFLCMC contracting officer. “It’s an honor to serve with such a dedicated team that is making a difference.”

3M has already placed orders for raw material and two new N95 manufacturing lines. To meet increased production capacity, 3M plans to expand its facility in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and also perform initial production in Wisconsin.

“The Air Force is pleased to execute recent contracts to expand N95 mask production for our nation,” said Dr. Will Roper, the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology, and logistics. “Our past initiatives to empower our acquisition workforce and to accelerate programs have put us in a good position to respond to the present crisis with speed and agility. We are proud to be an important part of the solution.”

Roper established the DAF-ACT across the service’s acquisition enterprise to execute requirements from the JATF and to collect and consolidate funding requests needed to recover programs from COVID-19 impacts.

“Our acquisition management and contracting professionals are working seamlessly as part of a whole-of-government response and with industry to ensure we effectively and expeditiously align resources with requirements,” said Maj. Gen. Cameron Holt, DAF-ACT director. “Our team is proud to support critical acquisition efforts that will continue to fortify our nation’s supply chain and resilience.”

Posted in Air Force, Contracts, COVID-19 Pandemic, Guest Post | 1 Comment »

Study Shows How Microorganisms Survive in Harsh Environments

Saturday, May 9th, 2020

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — In northern Chile’s Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth, microorganisms are able to eke out an existence by extracting water from the rocks they colonize.

An Army-funded project by researchers at the University of California, Irvine, Johns Hopkins University and University of California, Riverside gained an in-depth understanding of the mechanisms by which some cyanobacteria, an ancient group of photosynthetic microbes, survive in harsh environments.

The new insights, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, demonstrate how life can flourish in places without much water in evidence – including Mars – and how people living in arid regions may someday be able to procure hydration from available minerals.

“The Army has a strong interest in how microorganisms well-adapted to extreme environments can be exploited for novel applications such as material synthesis and power generation within these harsh fielded environments,” said Dr. Robert Kokoska, program manager, Army Research Office, an element of U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Army Research Laboratory. “This study provides valuable clues for uncovering the evolved design strategies used by these native desert-dwelling microbes to maintain their viability in the face of multiple environmental challenges.”

Through work in the field and laboratory experiments, the research team focused on the interactions of Chroococcidiospsis, a desiccation-resistant species of cyanobacteria that is found in deserts around the world, and gypsum, a water containing calcium sulfate-based mineral. The colonizing lifeforms exist beneath a thin layer of rock that gives them a measure of protection against the Atacama’s extreme temperature, high solar irradiance and battering winds.

Co-author Jocelyne DiRuggiero, JHU associate professor of biology, traveled to the remote desert to collect gypsum samples and brought them back to her labs in the United States. She cut small pieces, where microorganisms could be found, and sent them to UCI for materials analysis.

In one of the most striking findings of the study, the researchers learned that the microorganisms change the very nature of the rock they occupy. By extracting water, they cause a phase transformation of the material – from gypsum to anhydrite, a dehydrated mineral.

According to DiRuggiero, the impetus for the published work came when Wei Huang, a UCI post-doctoral scholar in materials science & engineering, spotted data showing an overlap in concentrations of anhydrite and cyanobacteria in the gypsum samples collected in the Atacama.

“Our analysis of the regions of rock where microbes were colonized revealed a dehydrated phase of calcium sulfate, suggesting that they extract water from the rock to survive,” said David Kisailus, lead author and UCI professor of materials science & engineering. “We wanted to do some more controlled experiments to validate that hypothesis.”

DiRuggiero’s team then allowed the organisms to colonize half-millimeter cubes of rocks, called coupons, under two different conditions, one in the presence of water, to mimic a high-humidity environment, and the other completely dry. In the midst of moisture, the gypsum did not transform to the anhydrite phase.

“They didn’t need water from the rock, they got it from their surroundings,” Kisailus said. “But when they were put under stressed conditions, the microbes had no alternative but to extract water from the gypsum, inducing this phase transformation in the material.”

Kisailus’ team used a combination of advanced microscopy and spectroscopy to examine the interactions between the biological and geological counterparts, finding that the organisms bore into the material like tiny miners by excreting a biofilm containing organic acids, Kisailus said.

Huang used a modified electron microscope equipped with a Raman spectrometer to discover that the organisms used the acid to penetrate the rock in specific crystallographic directions – only along certain planes where they could more easily access water existing between faces of calcium and sulfate ions.

Kisailus said the project was a great demonstration of interdisciplinary research between microbiologists and materials scientists that may, one day, open doors to other forms of scientific discovery.

“Scientists have suspected for a long time that microorganisms might be able to extract water from minerals, but this is the first demonstration of it,” DiRuggiero said. “This is an amazing survival strategy for microorganisms living at the dry limit for life, and it provides constraints to guide our search for life elsewhere.”

Researchers said this study can benefit the Army Research Lab’s efforts in synthetic biology.

“These findings have drawn the interest of our lab as microbial survival mechanisms can be leveraged for biomanufacturing or sensing platforms in harsh military environments,” said Dr. Matthew Perisin of the lab’s biotechnology branch.

In addition to the Army, NASA also provided funding for this project.

Posted in CBRNE, COVID-19 Pandemic, Guest Post, Medical | Comments Off on Study Shows How Microorganisms Survive in Harsh Environments

Propel Meets the Growing Demand with CSM-1000 Face Masks

Thursday, May 7th, 2020

Propel LLC is woman owned small business, focused on product innovation, development, sales, and marketing of innovative textile driven technologies for the First Responder and US Military markets.

Propel has quickly pivoted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and developed a Cloth Mask using Rhode Island-made textiles and a RI-made nose stay.

The CSM 1000 mask uses athletic wear textiles that are:
• Breathable
• Comfortable
• Quick drying
• Hand or Machine washable
• Soft, comfortable elastic band for retention
• Adjustable nose stay for customized fit

At Propel, we usually spend our time developing innovative solutions for customers such as the US Navy, US Army, US Air Force and US Marines. In response to the COVID

-19 pandemic we have reacted quickly to leverage our deep knowledge of textile technology and the US textile industry to develop a comfortable, quick-drying, washable cloth face mask.

The full scale of the shortage of face masks within the United States began to take shape as early as March where both the CDC and FDA began to reach out to American businesses to request local supply of alternative masks (no 510(k) clearance). The FDA recognized the urgent need for face masks in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic due to increased use and shortages in their availability – luckily Propel’s President, Ms. Clare King and her team of textile experts and designers had already anticipated that this would be the case and were focused on this problem for several weeks prior.

Our goal was a great product at a fair price. From concept to production took 5 days, including developing the all-important aluminum nose stay. We are now producing our masks in multiple US factories, sourcing US-made textiles and components from our home state of Rhode Island and across the country. Factory capacities are expanding to meet demand.

Available in white, we are adding navy blue, black and tan. We are working hard to have inventory on hand, but right now masks are selling even before they hit the shelf.

We are serving the need for cloth masks for individuals, families, employees and employers everywhere, as well as the US Military and our valued First Responders.

PLEASE NOTE:

You may use this face mask when face masks approved for medical purposes are unavailable. Although FDA has not specifically cleared or approved our masks, FDA has authorized their use under an Emergency Use Authorization for use by health care practitioners to help prevent the spread of infection or illness in healthcare settings and by the general public to help slow the spread of the virus during the COVID-19 pandemic.* The CSM Mask does follow all FDA requirements for masks being made in response to the COVID 19 need for social distancing.

BODY CONTACT MATERIALS ON THIS MASK INCLUDE: KNIT ELASTIC, 100% POLYESTER THREAD, AND 100% NYLON KNIT FABRIC. MACHINE WASH OR HAND WASH, HOT WATER AND SOAP. LINE DRY OR TUMBLE DRY. NOT FLAME RESISTANT.